Oxfam study: The super-rich are profiting from both sides of the climate crisis

According to a study by the charity Oxfam, the world's richest people are not only profiting from the polluting activities responsible for the climate disaster, but are also continuously making money by taking advantage of the consequences of that disaster.

The organisation, which works on global equality, found that the world's richest 0.1 percent have invested heavily in disaster response, recovery and reconstruction. The market is expected to grow from 70 billion dollars a year to 92 billion dollars by 2029.

According to the organisation, this amounts to a kind of 'double profit' from the climate crisis for the world's richest and most influential people. More worryingly, it also works as an incentive for them to delay or obstruct steps to solve the climate crisis.

It is also increasing global inequality, because those least responsible for global warming ultimately have to put money into the pockets of those most responsible — through paying high food prices, through the cost of repairing homes damaged by extreme weather, or through having to move to another area.

Oxfam's chief influencing officer, Jean McLean, accused billionaires of turning chaos into profit.

She said: 'The super-rich benefit from both sides of the crisis: first, through continued investment in polluting industries, and second, through investment in the fast-growing adaptation economy — that is, in a warming world they are selling recovery and rebuilding services. Those least responsible for the climate crisis are suffering its worst consequences, while those who created the crisis are in the best position to protect themselves.'

The report said the world's richest 0.1 percent — a group of 8 million people — are responsible for more carbon emissions than the poorest 3.5 billion people combined. As a result, in events such as extreme heatwaves, this group has played a role 125 times greater than an ordinary person.

One reason is their lifestyle. For example, the world's private jets emit more carbon dioxide in just two seconds than most people in the world emit in an entire year. But the group's biggest impact comes through their investments.

Oxfam's new 'destruction and reconstruction' index identified 217 corporations that either accelerate the climate disaster or do business adapting to it through cooling equipment, flood defences, firefighting equipment, transport, food, insurance and lending.

Last year these companies earned an average of 1.8 billion US dollars and paid out 1 billion dollars in dividends to shareholders. Six large asset management firms, which advise wealthy investors, are on the list because of their own positions and also hold large investments in other companies on the list. According to Oxfam, the two largest firms, BlackRock and Vanguard, hold shares in 92 percent of the companies in the index, worth more than 1 trillion dollars in total.

Oxfam also noted that crises such as extreme weather or war increase the profits of large food commodity trading companies. The wealth of the owners of these billionaire-controlled companies has increased by 120 billion dollars since 2020.

According to Oxfam, when crops are damaged by drought, flood or storms, food prices rise; and while small producers and ordinary consumers are harmed by that price rise, large corporations and their investors benefit disproportionately.