South Africa’s income growth over the past decade has not arisen from employment, according to new research by the Bureau of Market Research (BMR). Between 2015 and 2025, total personal income rose by more than 80%, from R3.7 trillion to R6.8 trillion, but salaries and wages fell from 58% to 52% of total income.

Investment income jumped 133%, while pensions and annuities grew 131%. By contrast, wages increased just 60%. The BMR found that only about 3% of adults rely on investments or pensions as their main income source, yet they captured nearly a third of the decade’s total income gains. Older South Africans benefited the most, with investment income for those over 65 rising more than 220%.

The BMR cautioned that strong financial market returns and a weak economy meant wealth holders pulled ahead while wage earners fell behind. “The story of 2015 to 2025 is one in which assets, not jobs or degrees, drove the strongest income growth,” it said.