Dark Mode
Saturday, 12 April 2025
Logo
Economic Storms Batter the Super Rich: Enormous Losses in the Markets
أثرياء العالم

Global stock markets are experiencing severe turmoil following the U.S. administration's imposition of new tariffs, leading to significant losses for major business leaders and investors. In the first two days of trading after the announcement of "Liberation Day," the richest 500 people in the world recorded a collective loss of $536 billion, marking the largest wealth decline over a short period, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Here are the most affected by these economic fluctuations, with only one billionaire showing success this year.

Elon Musk

Elon Musk, the world's richest man and CEO of Tesla, suffered the largest loss by far. A staggering $31 billion was wiped off his net worth between the market opening on Thursday and its closing on Friday, as Tesla’s stock price declined. Despite the drop in Tesla shares, his company SpaceX remains among his most valuable assets. So far this year, Musk's fortune has decreased by $130 billion, but he still holds the title of the richest person in the world with a net worth of $302 billion.

Mark Zuckerberg

The founder of Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, recorded the second-largest loss, losing over $27 billion. With a net worth estimated at $179 billion, Meta's shares were severely affected by the downturn, plummeting nearly 14 percent over two days due to the impact of tariffs on tech companies. To date, Zuckerberg's personal fortune has declined by more than $28 billion this year.

Jeff Bezos

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos experienced the third-largest loss, amounting to $23.5 billion. The market value of Amazon, which specializes in selling imported goods, was significantly impacted, as Chinese sellers make up over 50 percent of the company's e-commerce platform. Although Amazon's stock rose slightly by 0.4 percent, Bezos has lost a total of $45 billion from his fortune, which is estimated at $193 billion.

Bernard Arnault

Owner of the luxury goods empire LVMH, Bernard Arnault, faced a loss of $6 billion on Thursday and $5 billion on Friday due to trade tensions and the effects of tariffs. His loss reflects a continuous decline in his wealth, which is currently estimated at $158 billion, representing a total decrease of $18.6 billion so far.

Warren Buffett: The Exception

In contrast to the other billionaires, Warren Buffett, the head of Berkshire Hathaway, saw an increase in his wealth to $155 billion this year. Despite losing $2.57 billion during the recent market crash, Buffett has added $12.7 billion to his net worth since the beginning of the year, demonstrating strong performance from his company amidst volatile market conditions.

Caricature

BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...

ads

Newsletter

Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!