The US is still the wealthiest country in the world, topping the ranking of wealth markets in terms of liquid assets, according to GlobalData’s recent The Global Wealth Market in 2017 report
In second position is China, with less than a third of the liquid wealth held in the US, closely followed by Japan.
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This comes as no surprise since these three markets are the biggest economies in the world, and they are forecast to hold onto their positions in our wealth markets classification up to 2021.
The rest of the top 10 ranking is populated by large Western countries, as well as prominent Asia Pacific economies; however, these markets’ total wealth remain far behind the top three wealth pots.
Nonetheless, mature economies in Europe will lag behind other countries in terms of future growth. Markets like France and Spain will lose ground to Asia Pacific economies like India and Australia by 2021.
On the other hand, the top 10 ranking of the fastest-growing markets is dominated by emerging and frontier economies, including China.
Analyzing growth over the 2012–16 period, Kazakhstan ranks first. The country has experienced fast economic development in recent years, with major contributing factors being a business and culture expo held in the capital Astana during June to September 2017, and an economic partnership with China on the “Belt and Road” programme.
Kazakhstan is forecast to continue to record above-average growth rates, although over the 2017–21 period Cambodia and Mongolia will be faster-growing.
Although these markets may not appeal to wealth managers due to their limited size and underdeveloped nature, their growth should be monitored, and competitors should be ready to seize the opportunity whenever this manifests. In fact, by 2021 the Kazakhstan wealth market will be just three ranks below the likes of Qatar.
