Bill Bryson: 2% Drive World Economy

Posted by admin on Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Money Quote by Bill Bryson emphasizes the extremes of a world economy driven by a tiny percentage of the earth’s inhabitants – just 2 percent of the planet consume what is produced worldwide.
 

 

“The whole of the global economy is based on supplying the cravings of two per cent of the world’s population” — Bill Bryson

 

 

In this quote, author Bill Bryson is making an observation about the disproportionate influence of a small percentage of consumers on the global economy. By stating that the entire world economy is based on supplying the cravings of just two percent of the world’s population, Bryson is suggesting that a very small minority drives much of international trade and production through their purchasing power and demands.

His point is that despite representing a tiny fraction of people worldwide, this top two percent spends enough money and consumes enough goods and services that their preferences largely determine what gets produced on a global scale. Bryson’s quote highlights how wealth is concentrated, yet the spending habits of the affluent few have outsized ramifications for economic activity and growth everywhere.

Birthday: December 8, 1951

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