Americans got rich during the pandemic. The greatest increase in 30 years

During the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, American families gained 13.5 trillion dollars, the largest increase in the last three decades, WSJ reports.

Many Americans were repaying their credit card debt during the coronavirus crisis, saved more and refinanced cheaper mortgage loans. Thanks to that instead of counting losses, they multiplied their capitalunlike the 2008 crisis when US farms lost nearly $ 8 trillion.

In some respects, the uniqueness of the Covid-19 recession and the economic recovery should come as no surprise. The extent of the pandemic was unprecedented in the modern era. But the government’s help was also unprecedented. The United States has borrowed and spent trillions of dollars to keep the economy from slipping further into crisis, reminds WSJ.

These actions contributed to the economic recovery and the unexpected boom in the stock market, as low interest rates prompted investors to buy shares.

Also US household wealth increased in the first quarter of 2021. According to data from the Federal Reserve as of June 2021, the net worth of households and nonprofits increased to $ 136.9 trillion during this time, an increase of 3.8% compared to the end of 2020. But these profits were not shared equally, notes the Reuters Agency.

The richest 1 percent Americans controlled about $ 41.52 trillion in the first quarter of 2021, while the poorest 50 percent of Americans only controlled about $ 2.62 trillion, or 16 times less than a small group of the rich.

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