Taiwan ranked first in Asia and fifth globally in terms of net financial assets per capita, the Allianz Global Wealth Report 2022 said.
With net financial assets per capita of 138,220 euros (US$134,364) by the end of last year, the report classified Taiwan as one of 30 advanced economies out of 57 surveyed, according to the report released by Germany-based Allianz SE on Wednesday.
“In terms of net financial assets, Asia [excluding] Japan has seen important developments in the past two decades, moving from 1,070 euros per capita back in 2000 to 8,710 euros (end-2021),” the report said.
Photo: CNA
While Singapore has increased its net wealth per capita by two-fold in the past decade to 134,150 euros, Taiwan surpassed the city-state to become the richest Asian country in terms of net financial assets per capita, the report said
The US, Switzerland, Denmark and Sweden were the only countries that had higher financial assets per capita than Taiwan, at 259,780 euros, 237,110 euros, 183,610 euros and 146,510 euros respectively.
In terms of gross financial assets per capita, Taiwan ranked ninth in the world with 164,610 euros, after Switzerland, the US, Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Canada, Singapore and Australia.
In the report, Allianz mentioned the ballooning debt ratio in some Asian countries due to booms in the auto and housing industries.
In South Korea, household debt as a percentage of GDP stood at 109.1 percent last year, followed by 90 percent for Thailand and Taiwan.
“For the whole region, the ratio reached 60.6 percent in 2021, making it the only one where liabilities are considerably higher today than a decade ago,” the report said.
Allianz said the global economy prospered last year, with “bullish stock markets powered by monetary policy,” adding that that global financial assets grew by double digits for the third year in a row, reaching 233 trillion euros (an increase of 10.4 percent).
However, it forecast that global financial assets are set to decline this year due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, as “inflation is rampant, energy and food are scarce and monetary tightening is squeezing economies and markets.”
CALL FOR PEACE: Czech President Petr Pavel raised concerns about China’s military maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait and its ‘unfriendly action’ in the South China Sea The leaders of three diplomatic allies — Guatemala, Paraguay and Palau — on Tuesday voiced support for Taiwan’s inclusion in the UN on the first day of the UN General Debate in New York. In his address during the 78th UN General Assembly, Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr urged the UN and all parties involved in cross-strait issues to exercise restraint and seek a peaceful resolution. “The well-being and prosperity of nations and their economies are intrinsically linked to global peace and stability,” he said. He also thanked partner nations such as Taiwan, Australia, Japan and the US for providing assistance
CROSS-STRAIT CONCERNS: At the same US Congress hearing, Mira Resnick said a US government shutdown could affect weapons sales and licenses to allies such as Taiwan A Chinese blockade of Taiwan would be a “monster risk” for Beijing and likely to fail, while a military invasion would be extremely difficult, senior Pentagon officials told the US Congress on Tuesday. Growing worries of a conflict come as China has ramped up military pressure on Taiwan, holding large-scale war games simulating a blockade on the nation, while conducting near-daily warplane incursions and sending Chinese vessels around its waters. US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner said a blockade would be “a monster risk for the PRC [People’s Republic of China].” “It would likely not succeed, and it
AMPHIBIOUS EXERCISES: The defense ministry said that it had detected 24 Chinese PLA Air Force planes entering Taiwan’s air defense zone over the previous 24 hours Chinese movements around Taiwan were “abnormal,” Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said yesterday, flagging recent amphibious exercises in addition to drills Taipei has observed in China’s Fujian Province. Taiwan has reported a rise in Chinese military activity over the past week as dozens of fighters, drones, bombers and other aircraft, as well as warships, have operated around the nation. “Our initial analysis is that they are doing joint drills in September, including land, sea, air and amphibious,” Chiu told reporters at the legislature in Taipei. The “recent enemy situation is quite abnormal,” he said. The comments followed a statement from the
IN MOURNING: Tsai visited the site and spoke with family members of those killed, while all the major presidential candidates said they would temporarily halt campaigning A fire and subsequent explosions at a golf ball factory at Pingtung Technology Industrial Park (屏東科技產業園區) killed at least seven people, including four firefighters, and injured 98, while three were still missing, authorities said yesterday. The blaze at Launch Technologies Co’s (明揚國際) plant on Jingjian Road raged for more than 12 hours after it started at about 5pm on Friday, officials said. The Pingtung County Fire Bureau early yesterday used large excavators to search for missing people, while family members waited at the scene. Pingtung County Fire Bureau Director Hsu Mei-hsueh (許美雪) said the bureau received a call about the fire at 5:31pm