Global dividend growth was strong in 2017 after being virtually non-existent in 2016, according to the latest Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index report.
Global dividends increased by 7.7 percent in 2017 to a record $1.252 trillion, with 11 out of the index’s 41 countries paying record dividends.
By comparison, Janus Henderson found that $1.163 trillion in dividends were paid in 2016, accounting for a mere 0.2 percent year-over-year increase.
In the U.S., companies paid $438.1 billion in dividends, 6.3 percent higher than the previous year. North American dividends were 6.9 percent higher, at $476.7 million.
Globally, every sector except telecommunications saw dividend growth in 2017, while in the U.S. three-quarters of sectors raised payouts, the report said.
The Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index is a long-term measure of global dividend trends, tracking the progress companies are making in paying investors income as their capital. The index uses 2009 as a base year, giving global dividends a score of 100. As of Dec. 31, the index had risen to 171.2, meaning that dividends have risen by almost 75 percent since 2009.
Strong dividend growth came from companies in the Asia Pacific region, which paid $139.9 billion in dividends in 2017, an 18.8 percent year-over-year increase, and emerging markets, where $102.4 billion in payouts represented a 16.5 percent year-over-year increase.
Janus Henderson expects earnings growth will continue to support global dividend increases, projecting 7.7 percent dollar-adjusted dividend growth in 2018, providing a total of $1.348 trillion in payouts.