The rise of artificial intelligence in financial markets helped the US outpace the world in the number of millionaires last year, with 600,000 more among its ranks.
That’s more than the population of Baltimore, bringing the total number of Americans with at least $1 million in investable assets, not including their primary residence, to 7.5 million, CNBC reported. reported with reference to data from the Paris-based consulting company Capgemini.
Last year’s 7.3% jump in the number of millionaires in the US helped North America regain the world’s fastest rate of millionaire growth from the Asia-Pacific region.
In Asia, the number of millionaires grew by 4.8%, and in Europe the number of millionaires grew by 4%. The number of millionaires in Latin America grew by 2.7% last year and by 2.1% in the Middle East. Africa saw a decline of 0.1%, according to Capgemini.
The net worth of all US millionaires combined was about $26 trillion. The number of people with a net worth of $30 million or more has also reached about 100,000, and their combined net worth is about $7.4 trillion.
AI and tech stocks are boosting millionaires
The pace of growth in the number of millionaires in the United States has been driven in part by a surge in the stock market, led by artificial intelligence and technology companies. The S&P 500 soared 24% last year, thanks in part to investor optimism about the future of artificial intelligence.
Artificial intelligence chip supplier Nvidia topped the index with a 239% gain in 2023. Meta and Tesla, two other AI tech giants, grew 194% and 102%, respectively, last year. Goldman Sachs estimates that global investment in artificial intelligence could reach $200 billion by 2025.
The stock market gains that helped attract so many millionaires in 2023 have continued into this year, with the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq hitting record highs this week. The S&P 500 is up about 12% year to date, and some of the biggest AI players, such as Nvidia and Microsoft, are seeing their stocks continue to rise in 2024.