AAPI individuals lead in asset ownership and income

investmentnews.com:

A recent study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, published right after Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, sheds fresh insight into the financial position of the AAPI community in the US.

The report, titled “Understanding the Financial Wellbeing of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community,” evaluates income levels and asset ownership within the demographic, shedding light on their financial status relative to other racial groups.

Drawing on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 Survey of Income and Program Participation, the analysis compared five racial groups: White alone, Black alone, Asian alone and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander alone (AAPI), American Indian or Alaska Native alone, and those identifying with more than one race.

Looking at the groups through several lenses, including work arrangement, English proficiency, US nativity status, and metropolitan status, the report found the AAPI segments leads on several financial fronts.

Possibly influenced by their generally prudent savings habits, the AAPI cohort exhibited the highest ownership rates of stocks or bonds, retirement assets, and checking accounts. More than a third of the AAPI group (35 percent) owned stocks or bonds, compared to one in four (23 percent) among the “White alone” group.

The data also showed a racial income gap: individuals in the AAPI group stood head and shoulders above other cohorts, with a median income of $55,342. That’s 21 percent higher than the overall median income of $45,784, and well above the median income of $45,784 for the White alone group, and $37,920 for those identifying as Black alone.

According to EBRI, the trend of higher ownership rates and income levels among AAPI