The world’s 400 richest people lost US$182 billion last week from their collective fortunes as weak manufacturing data from China and a rout in commodities sent global markets plunging.
The weekly drop for the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a group that includes Warren Buffett and Glencore PLC’s Ivan Glasenberg, was the biggest since tracking of the expanded list began in September last year. The combined net worth of the index members fell by US$76 billion on Friday alone, when the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index of US stocks ended its worst week since 2011.
“For them that’s a fractional percentage, even though US$182 billion is a big number,” Aspiriant director of investment John Collins said.
“A week like this feels really bad, but when you take a step back, in a big picture view it’s not a disaster by any means,” he said.
Friday’s losses put the world’s richest 400 into the red for the year to date. They are now down US$74 billion this year, with a collective net worth of US$3.98 trillion.
The week’s largest setback in dollar terms was experienced by Buffett, who saw his fortune drop by US$3.6 billion as Berkshire Hathaway Inc slipped more than 5 percent. The investor is the world’s third-wealthiest person, with a fortune of US$63.4 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The slump in oil, which had its longest weekly losing streak since 1986 amid signs of an extended supply glut, contributed to US$15.2 billion in losses for the world’s wealthiest energy billionaires. Continental Resources Inc chairman Harold Hamm saw US$895 million, or 9 percent of his net worth, vanish this week.
Glasenberg, chief executive officer of mining company Glencore PLC, lost US$237 million during the week as commodity prices slid to their lowest levels in 13 years. Glencore reached a record low in London on Friday, down more than 8 percent from a week earlier, after the trading house reported its profit sank 56 percent in the first half of the year. Glasenberg’s fortune has decreased more than 40 percent this year, to US$3.1 billion.
China’s 26 wealthiest people, pummeled by Hong Kong’s bear market and a weaker yen, lost US$18.8 billion during the week. Wang Jianlin (王健林) of Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co (大連萬達商業地產) was hit hardest, losing US$3.5 billion.
Eleven billionaires added to their fortunes in spite of the market turmoil. The week’s biggest dollar gainer was Sun Pharmaceuticals’ Dilip Shanghvi. The world’s 39th-richest person became US$467 million wealthier, elevating his net worth to US$18.9 billion.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index takes measure of the world’s wealthiest people based on market and economic changes and Bloomberg News reporting. Each net-worth figure is updated every business day at 5:30pm in New York and listed in US dollars.
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