NEW YORK, April 4. /TASS/. The combined net worth of the world’s 500 richest individuals dropped by $208 bln in a single day after import tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump triggered a sharp sell-off across global markets, Bloomberg reported.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (BBI), this represents the fourth-largest single-day decline in the index’s 13-year history and the most substantial drop since the COVID-19 pandemic. The report noted that more than half of the billionaires on the list saw their fortunes shrink by an average of 3.3%.
The calculations show that American billionaires were hit hardest, particularly Meta Platforms Inc. (recognized as extremist in Russia) CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Carlos Slim, the wealthiest person in Mexico, was among the few billionaires outside the United States to avoid the negative impact of the tariffs, the agency noted.
Zuckerberg suffered the steepest losses: a 9% drop in Meta’s stock slashed his wealth by $17.9 bln, according to the report. Amazon shares also fell 9%, cutting Jeff Bezos’s net worth by $15.9 bln. Tesla CEO Elon Musk lost $11 bln after his company’s shares declined by 5.5%.
On April 2, Trump announced the introduction of import tariffs on goods from 185 countries and territories. He stated that a minimum tariff rate of 10% would be applied to imported products, with specific tariffs designated for certain countries. Following the imposition of these tariffs, the US market experienced a significant downturn.