File it under things you already know: the rich are getting richer.
In the United States, the share of total household wealth owned by the wealthiest 0.00001 percent has grown tenfold since 1982, according to a new paper by economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman.
'Wealth concentration has increased particularly fast during the Covid-19 pandemic,' they write.
The richest 0.00001 percent of the US consisted of 18 individuals with a net worth exceeding $50 billion in wealth in 2021, which was a banner year for the ultra-wealthy.
In the United States, the share of total household wealth owned by the wealthiest 0.00001 percent has grown tenfold since 1982, rising especially quickly last year
Tesla CEO Elon Musk added $121 billion to his fortune last year, the largest in the world at $277 billion as the year ended
'Top-end wealth is large relative to the economy, and therefore a sizable potential tax revenue source,' write Saez and Zucman, who argue in favor of a wealth tax like the one famously proposed by Senator Elizabeth Warren.
The economists argue that prior attempts at a wealth tax in Europe failed because they targeted the well-to-do instead of the extreme wealthiest.
They also note that the taxes were easily evaded by moving abroad, as most European countries do not tax their citizens worldwide as the US does.
In 2021, the world's 10 richest people added about $402 billion to their collective net worth.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk added $121 billion to his fortune, the largest in the world at $277 billion as the year ended, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos , who started the year in the top spot, sank to number two, adding a mere $4.54 billion to his net worth, which stood at $195 billion.
Economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman argue that a hypothetical wealth tax
