Asia Pacific HNWI wealth to grow 8.8 per cent annually until 2018
The combined wealth of Asia-Pacific’s high net worth individuals (HNWIs) is expected to grow at an annual rate of 8.8 per cent until 2018 following a more than 22 per cent fall in 2008, according to the Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management and Capgemini Asia Pacific wealth report.
China and India are likely to lead HNWI growth in Asia Pacific, which is expected to grow faster than the global average of 7.1 per cent.
The report focuses on 11 core markets: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.
It shows that Asia-Pacific’s population of HNWIs fell 14.2 per cent to 2.4 million in 2008, while the combined wealth of the region's HNWIs dropped 22.3 per cent to US$7.4 trillion.
Seventy two per cent of the Asia Pacific’s millionaires are in Japan and China, which have high net worth populations of 1.4 million and 364,000 respectively. This accounts for US$4.8 trillion or 66 per cent of the region’s total wealth, according to the report.
Meanwhile, Australia has the third highest number of HNWIs at 129,200, with a combined wealth of US$380 billion or 5 per cent of Asia Pacific’s wealth.
Research shows that most wealth management firms are investing in four key Asia Pacific markets: Australia, Japan, China and India, Capgemini Financial Services senior manager Wayne Li said.
Li said Australia now has more wealth management firms across more cities than the average in Asia Pacific.
The report also showed that in 2008 Asia Pacific HNWIs preferred cash and bank deposits over other asset classes, with HNWIs holding 29 per cent of assets in cash or bank deposits.
Australia’s HNWIs on the other hand allocated more of their investments to property than cash.
Forty one per cent of Australian HNWI assets were in real estate, compared with 19 per cent in cash and bank deposits.
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