Microsoft Corp. founder, Bill Gates, goes back into the world's richest man. Gates took over the position of the US investor, Warren Buffett, who last year got the position.
Collectively, the riches of the world's top rated billionaires decreased, as cited Forbes magazine and Reuters, Wednesday (03/11/2009).
Gates, last year occupied the third position with riches of US $58 billion,is now in the top position with the riches only US $40 billion. In the second position is Warren Buffett with the riches of US $37 billion. While in the previous year when occupying the top position, Buffett's riches reached US $62 billion.
Telco conglomerate from Mexico, Carlos Slim, is in the third position with the riches of US $35 billion, down from the second position in the previous year with the riches of US $60 billion.
Collectively, the three world's richest billionaire lost US $68 billion compared to last year as of February,13, 2009 when Forbes gathered data for preparing the list of richest people in the world which is released yearly.
According to the Executive Director of Forbes magazine Steve Forbes, the decline of the billionaires' riches is not good for the world economy.
"The billionaires are not worrying about their wealth. But if their wealth are getting lower and you do not create new billionaires, that means the whole world does not work correctly, " he said.
The riches of the world's billionaires are down from US $4.4 trillion to US $2.4. While the number of them are down from 1125 to 793.
"This is the first time since 2003 we lost billionaires. And we had never lost them as much as this," said Forbes senior editor, Luisa Kroll.
New York City replaced Moscow as a home for billionaires with the number of 55 people. While the number of billionaires living in Russia has decreased from 87 to 32 people, a shocking decline.
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