For the first time ever, China has overtook the United States in 2019 to become the country with most people in the top 10 per cent of global wealth distribution.

100 million people in China in top 10 per cent global wealth

According to the 2019 Global Wealth Report by Credit Suisse Group, China has hit a global milestone this year with 99.9 million Chinese people in the top 10 per cent of global wealth distribution.

With that, China surpassed the U.S. for the first time, with 98.8 million people in the top 10 per cent of global wealth distribution.

With 4.4 million millionaires in the country, China is the has the second-most millionaires in the world behind the U.S., which still houses 40 per cent of the world's 47 million millionaires.

The United States still has the highest number of people placing in the top 1 per cent of global wealth distribution in the world, quadrupling China in the category.

Total household wealth in China increased 17 times since 2000

From the start of the millennium to 2019, China's total household wealth saw a 17-fold rise from US$3.7 trillion to US$63.8 trillion, more than triple the rate of most countries.

While China's overall wealth inequality was low at the turn of the century, it has risen considerably in recent years.

With a much larger pool of wealthy Chinese in the top 10 per cent of global wealth distribution, it has contributed to the rising wealth inequality, and in part to the urban-rural divide in China.

Top image collage via