The old saying holds true: The rich do get richer.

Even as world financial markets broke down last year, personal wealth around the world grew 5 percent to $109.5 trillion, according to a global wealth report released on Thursday by Boston Consulting Group.

It was the sixth consecutive¹ year of expanding wealth. The fastest growth was among households in developing regions, such as China and the Gulf² States and among families who were already rich.

That wealth also is increasingly concentrated among the richest.

The top 1 percent of all households owned 35 percent of the world's wealth last year. Meanwhile, the top 0.001 percent, ultra-rich households holding at least $5 million in assets, commanded $21 trillion -- a fifth of the world's wealth.

The planet also continues to mint new millionaires rapidly. The biggest jumps in 2007 came from emerging countries in Asia and Latin America. Overall, the number of millionaire households grew 11 percent to 10.7 million last year.

BCG notes that, while the rich are still rich, they have been making some adjustments as a result of the financial crisis.

This year, assets are being shifted to more conservative investments, more money is being kept onshore in home markets and some individuals have curtailed³ new investment.

Yet BCG cautioned the outlook for wealth markets and the banks who serve them, is dimmed by the current financial crisis.

North American personal wealth growth slowed to 3.8 percent last year, compared with 9 percent in 2006, reflecting the mortgage crisis and the onset⁴ of the credit crunch⁵ last summer.

BCG, which advises banks and wealth managers, forecasts personal wealth will continue growing, but at a slower pace.

俗话说得好：富人的确越来越富。

美国波士顿咨询集团（BCG）上周四发布的一项全球财富报告显示，尽管去年全球金融市场动荡不安，但全世界的个人财富总量却增长了5%，达到109.5万亿美元。

全世界个人财富总量六年来一直保持增长趋势，其中，中国、海湾各国等发展中国家和地区，以及原本已经很富有的家庭增速最快。

而且个人财富还呈现出越来越集中于富裕人群的趋势。

去年，全球最富有的1%的家庭拥有全世界35%的财富；同时，家产超过500万美元的超级富豪占0.001%，他们的财富占据世界财富总量的五分之一，达到21万亿美元。

此外，世界各地的新百万富翁也不断涌现，其中亚洲和拉美地区发展中国家的增幅最大。总体来说，去年，全球资产超百万的家庭数量增长了11%，达到1070万。

波士顿咨询集团指出，尽管富人仍然很富，但面临目前的金融危机，他们也相应调整了投资策略。

今年，全球的资本更多地流向了较为保守的投资领域，更多资金被留在了国内市场，部分人则削减了投资项目。

尽管如此，波士顿咨询集团警告说，由于受目前金融危机影响，全球资本市场以及为其提供支持的银行系统的前景尚不明朗。

去年北美地区的个人财富增幅从2006年的9%下降至3.8%，这主要是受到次贷危机和从去年夏天开始的信贷紧缩的影响。

专门为银行和理财经理提供意见的波士顿咨询集团预测，全球个人财富总量仍将继续增长，但增速会放缓。