The world’s billionaires have grown richer since the start of the Covid crisis than during a 23-year period, Oxfam reports.
The charity says there are now 2,668 global billionaires, 573 more than in 2020.
They are collectively worth £10.2trillion – an increase of £3tn since the pandemic began.
Oxfam said their wealth grew more over the past two years than between 1987 and 2010.
Some have been boosted by a jump in share prices on the back of soaring demand for products.
Oxfam said profits have surged for food and energy giants, including US food company Cargill.
In the technology sector, Oxfam said Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, Amazon and Alphabet ( Google ) made £217bn in profits in 2021, almost twice as much as in 2019. It made Tesla boss Elon Musk the world’s richest person, worth £174bn.
Yet soaring energy and food prices have wreaked havoc for others. Oxfam recently warned that as many as 263 million more people could be pushed into extreme poverty this year.
Its report, Profiting from Pain, is published as governments, business leaders and billionaires meet at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Danny Sriskandarajah, Oxfam GB chief executive, said: “There can be no excuse for governments not to address gargantuan profits and wealth.
“Introducing wealth taxes would raise huge sums that could help vulnerable groups to survive this crisis.
“In the UK, a windfall tax on energy companies would be a strong place to start.”
