We are six and a half months into the global pandemic. How is everyone doing? One subset of Americans is doing exceptionally well – billionaires. Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and all of the other American billionaires have seen their wealth absolutely skyrocket over the past six months. This is in stark contrast to the millions of Americans who are out of work or earning less than they were before Covid-19 swept the nation. The 643 richest Americans have made an astounding $845 billion between March 18 and September 15, resulting in a combined uptick in their net worths of 29%.
The pandemic has created the worst unemployment crisis since the Great Depression. Entire industries – restaurants, live performances, Hollywood productions, catering, service industries, etc. – have shut down. The unemployment rate hit 14% in April. By August, it was 8.4%, partly due to some businesses and industries reopening and partly due to unemployment benefits running out, which caused many people to no longer be counted in the overall number of those out of work.
Many of the increases in billionaires' bottom lines are tied to company fortunes. For instance, Amazon's stock is up more than 60% this year. This surge is thanks in part to the increase in people shopping online for food and goods rather than risking catching Covid-19 by going to stores. Jeff Bezos' fortune has increased by more than $55 billion since early February. Similarly, the Walton family has seen their collective net worth rise by more than $60 billion during the same time frame for the same reasons. Walmart's stock is up 80% since this time last year.
Google co-founder Larry Page has seen his wealth increase by more than $18 billion since February. Elon Musk has made $70 billion in that same time, thanks to hitting specific goals laid out in his Tesla contract. Billionaires in general, and especially American billionaires, are witnessing their wealth grow in unprecedented ways in 2020. This trend is creating an even larger chasm between the richest Americans and the rest of us.
