Global female income to reach US$40T in 2020: report

PHOTO: Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan’s latest research, Global Mega Trends to 2030, found that the female economy is poised to outpace the economy of some of the biggest nations in the next five years. With more women entering the workforce, there will be a significant shift in financial and economic power toward women—both in the household and in professional environments.

“The increasing economic power of women will result in a big transformation in product design and marketing. Women are expected to spend more than US$40 trillion this year, ushering in the need for more focused user-centric strategies and products,” said Archana Vidyasekar, global research director, Visionary Innovation Group.

“An interesting trend to note is the change in gender strategies, moving from being women-centric to more gender-neutral. In many ways, this is the key to succeed with this segment. Women are not asking for exclusivity, they are looking for inclusivity—gender-neutral experiences that, unfortunately, are still lacking in many user experiences.”

Frost & Sullivan identified the following insights on the women’s economy:

• The global female income is expected to reach $40 trillion annually in 2020, up from $20 trillion in 2018.
• Women are expected to control $43 trillion of global consumer spending through voluntary private consumption or an exchange of money for goods and services in 2020.
• There will be 100 million more women in the global labor force by 2030. Asia-Pacific will have the largest female workforce, with millennials representing the largest proportion of female laborers in 2030.
• By 2030, women will change the workforce landscape with a more than 40% average participation rate, eventually adding up to 100 million more working women to the global economy. This would bring down the gender gap in labor participation rates by 25% by 2025.
• Women-owned companies will represent over 40% of registered businesses worldwide in 2020.