The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Shopping-mall mogul Henry Sy Sr. continues his rise on the prestigious list of Forbes World’s Billionaires’ List, climbing to 71st place from 73rd in 2015, despite his net worth falling to $12.9 billion from last year’s $14.2 billion.
This year’s roster also included the same 11 Filipino tycoons who were on last year’s list. However, most of them showed a decline in their fortunes, reflecting the overall sluggish global business. The only exception was Tony Tan Caktiong, of Jollibee Foods Corp., 63, whose net worth grew this year to $3 billion, from $2.7 billion, and whose ranking rose to 569th place from 690th last year.
The latest Forbes ranking of billionaires showed the combined wealth of the world’s Top 20 fell from $899 billion last year to $827 billion, and the number of billionaires in the world has shrunk from a record 1,826 in 2015 to 1,810.
It is the first time in seven years that the number of billionaires has decreased, and is the first drop in the wealth of the top 20 since 2012.
“Volatile stock markets, cratering oil prices, and a stronger dollar led to a dynamic reshuffling of wealth around the globe and a drop in 10-figure fortunes for the first time since 2009,” Forbes said.
Sy, whose SM group owns SM Prime Holdings Inc., BDO Unibank Inc. and SM Retail Inc., was followed by John Gokongwei Jr., chairman emeritus of JG Summit Holdings Inc., at 270th place, from 254th last year, with a net worth of $5 billion; Lucio Tan of LT Group Inc. at 380th, from 369th, $4 billion; George Ty of GT Capital Holdings at 421st, from 369th, $3.7 billion.
David Consunji of DMCI Holdings Inc., Andrew Tan Jr. of Alliance Global Group Inc., and Tan Caktiong were tied at 569th place.
Consunji fell from 405th place, with a net worth of $3 billion; the net worth of Tan, 63, also fell to $3 billion from $4.8 billion in 2015 that saw him slide down from last year’s 330th place.
Enrique Razon Jr., of International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) fell from 291st place last year to 722nd, as his fortune dipped to $2.4 billion from $5.2 billion last year.
Lucio and Susan Co of Puregold Price Club Inc. also saw a drop in their wealth to $1.6 billion this year, from $2.3 billion last year to rank 1,121st from 810th in 2015.
Roberto Coyiuto Jr. of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and PGA Automobile Inc. was also down to $1.6 billion, from $1.8 billion, ranking at 1,121st from 1,054th.
Former Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr. of Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. also slid to $1.3 billion this year from $1.6 billion, putting him at 1,367th from 1,190th in 2015.
More than a third of the $70 billion in decline on wealth was incurred by Carlos Slim, the Mexican telecoms tycoon whose fortune decreased to $50 billion from $77.1 billion in just a year. Shares in his bank, Grupo Financiero Inbursa, telecommunications company América Móvil and mining group Minera Frisco have all tumbled as he slid to fourth richest man in the world from second last year.
Bill Gates was again the wealthiest person in the world but the Microsoft founder’s fortune also dipped from $79.2 billion to $75 billion.
Among the billionaires, 1,186 are self-made, 228 inherited their wealth and 396 inherited a portion, but are growing it. Just 33 of the 190 female billionaires are self-made.
The biggest gainer on the list was Mark Zuckerberg, the boss of Facebook, whose wealth grew by $11.2 billion to give him a total net worth of $44.6 billion.
Zuckerberg is the sixth-richest person in the world, behind Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder, Slim, the investor Warren Buffett, Amancio Ortega, the Spanish businessman behind the Zara fashion empire; and Gates.