Skip to Main Content Area

Out of 6.2 billion people in the world today, 1.2 billion live on less than $1 per day. 70% of these people are women and girls. Read more One half of the world population lives on less than $2 per day. 160 million live on less than 50 cents. At least 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day. Read more The World Health Organization estimates that 1/3 of the world population is well-fed, 1/3 is under-fed, and 1/3 is starving. Read more Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read or write. A quarter of the world's population lives without electricity. Read more Approximately half the world's population lives in cities and towns. Read more By 2005, one out of three of urban dwellers was living in slum conditions, approximately 1 billion or 1/6 of the world's population. Read more There are about 14 million refugees (estimates range from 11 to 17 million) and 26 million internally displaced people (2007) in more than 50 countries. Read more The UN Development program estimates that only $13 billion is what is needed to provide for the health and nutritional needs of the world's poorest people. There are now over 1000 billionaires in the world. Read more The net worth of the richest thousand or so is about twice that of the poorest 2.5 billion people on the earth. The poorest 10% accounted for .5% and the wealthiest 10% for 59% of all consumption. Read more 12 million people die each year from the lack of water, including 3 million children from water-born disease. Read more 1.1 billion lack access to clean water; 2.6 billion live without decent sanitation; 4 billion without waste water disposal-that's approximately 1/6, 1/3 and 2/3 of the world's population respectively. Read more The poorest 10% accounted for .5% and the wealthiest 10% for 59% of all consumption. Read more In 2007 global GDP was $47 trillion. The top 250 companies in the world had combined sales of $14.87 trillion, that\'s 1/3 of global GDP and exceeds the GDP of the USA and EU. Read more The combined sales of the top 5 companies of $1.5 trillion is larger than the GDP of all but 7 countries. Read more One Measure of the Bubble: The gross amount of financial transactions amounts to two thousand trillion dollars, while the world GDP is only 44 thousand trillion. Read more 70% of these people are women and girls. Read more Out of 6.2 billion people in the world today, 1.2 billion live on less that $1 per day. Read more

Global Capitalism: December Update

These monthly economic updates begin with an update and analysis of major economic events of the last month and their contexts of longer-term economic trends shaping politics and society here and abroad.

Richard D. Wolff is Professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst where he taught economics from 1973 to 2008. He is currently a Visiting Professor in the Graduate Program in International Affairs of the New School University, New York City. He also teaches classes regularly at the Brecht Forum in Manhattan. For more information see his website at http://rdwolff.com/

Rick Wolff

Tue, 2011-12-13

OUR SPECIAL THANKS! The Brecht Forum owes its existence to a broad network of support. Our modest fees cover only a fraction of our costs and we rely on the progressive community for our financial survival. Hundreds of valued subscribers and donors provide steady contributions to all of our activities. Our programs are funded in part by Manhattan Neighborhood Network, The Bardon Cole Foundation, The Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, The Surdna Foundation, and by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Search

General

User login

Global Capitalism: December Update