China overtakes US as world’s richest nation as global wealth surges

China has surpassed the United States to become the world's richest country, following a sharp rise in wealth over the past two decades.

China has surpassed the United States to become the richest nation in the world as global wealth tripled over the past two decades, according to a new report by the research arm of consultants McKinsey & Co.

The report has been prepared after examining the national balance sheets of 10 countries, representing more than 60 per cent of world income. In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Jan Mischke, a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute in Zurich, said, “We are now wealthier than we have ever been.”