Last year, the number of millionaires in the United States increased by 600,000 to 7.5 million.
The boost to financial markets by artificial intelligence helped the growth of millionaires in the United States outpace the rest of the world last year, when the number of millionaires increased by 600,000.
NBC Finance reported, citing data from Paris-based Capgemini Consulting, that this is more than Baltimore's population, bringing the total number of Americans with at least $1 million in investable assets (excluding primary residences) to 7.5 million.
The number of millionaires in the United States increased by 7.3% last year, helping North America reclaim the highest number of millionaires in the world from the Asia-Pacific region.
The number of millionaires in Asia increased by 4.8%, while the number of millionaires in Europe increased by 4%. The number of millionaires in Latin America increased by 2.7 percent last year, and in the Middle East by 2.1 percent. According to Capgemini, Africa fell by 0.1%.
The combined wealth of all millionaires in the United States is about $26 trillion. The number of people with a net worth of more than $30 million has also reached about 100,000, and their cumulative net worth is about $7.4 trillion.
Artificial intelligence and tech stocks have fueled a surge in millionaires
The growth rate of US millionaires was driven in part by stock market gains led by artificial intelligence and technology companies. The S&P 500 soared 24% last year, in part because investors were optimistic about the future of artificial intelligence.
Nvidia, a supplier of artificial intelligence chips, leads the index with a 239% gain in 2023. Two other tech giants involved in artificial intelligence, Meta and Tesla, soared 194% and 102%, respectively, last year. Goldman Sachs estimates that global AI investment could be as high as $200 billion by 2025.
With the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq index hitting new all-time highs this week, the stock market rally that has helped add so many millionaires in 2023 continues so far this year. The S&P 500 is up about 12% so far this year, while shares of some of the biggest players in artificial intelligence, such as Nvidia and Microsoft, will continue to soar in 2024.