Citibank report says US will sink to fifth-richest nation within 40 years
If you enjoy peering insidethe minds of the world's super rich, take a spin through the 2012 "Wealth Report."
Compiled by Citibank, and aproperty consultancy called Knight Frank, it's a lengthy analysis based partlyon interviews with the super-rich. (Definition: people with more than $25million in investable assets.)
Yes, the report containsmusings on why yacht sales are down and the pros and cons of buying a sportsfranchise. But that's not the most interesting part.
The study predicts thatSingapore -- that little Southeast Asian city-state with loads of Type A zeal-- will be the world's richest nation by 2050.
And by that, they mean it’sper capita GDP at purchasing power parity. (For those who skipped economicsclass, these attempts to more accurately measure the average income byconsidering inflation, cost of living and exchange rates.)
According to Citibank's2050 prediction, the top five countries by this measure will be:
1. Singapore: $137,710
2. Hong Kong: $116,639
3. Taiwan: $114,093
4. South Korea: $107,752
And sliding in at numberfive, the only non-Asian nation, the U.S.: $100,802
But there are glaringquestions about these numbers, which are based on Citibank's own analysis.
According to the report,Singapore is already the top GDP per capita champ with a figure of more than$56,000. But that doesn't account for tiny, oil-rich Qatar, which leads mostrankings with an average of more than $92,000 according to the World Bank. Andthere's no mention of super-affluent Luxembourg either.
Regardless, Singapore isgenuinely affluent and the report suggests why.
In interviews with"high net-worth individuals" around the globe, the Wealth Reportasked the super-rich about their "favorite things."
In response, Indians saidcars and gadgets, Latin Americans said traveling and Africans said safaris.
The favored items ofextremely wealthy Singaporeans?
"Books and readingmaterials."
