The world’s 500 wealthiest individuals saw their combined fortunes decrease by $134 billion following a stock market sell-off, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The decline was triggered by fears of a potential US recession, weak jobs data, and concerns over global manufacturing activity.
Jeff Bezos’ Amazon shares plummet; other tech giants bear brunt of stock market plunge
Technology sector leaders bore the brunt of the losses. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos experienced his third-worst loss, with his wealth declining by approximately $15 billion as Amazon’s shares fell 8.8 percent on Friday.
Other notable losses included Oracle’s Larry Ellison ($5 billion), Alphabet co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page (over $3 billion each), Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg ($3 billion), and Tesla’s Elon Musk ($6.57 billion).
The market downturn began after the US Labour Department reported that the economy added only 114,000 jobs last month, below economists’ expectations of 185,000. The unemployment rate rose to 4.3 percent, its highest level since October 2021.
These figures led to significant declines in major US indices. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.4 percent since its July 10 record close, entering correction territory, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.8 percent and 1.5 percent respectively.
Global markets also felt the impact. In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 fell 1.3 percent, Paris’ CAC 40 dropped 1.6 percent, and Frankfurt’s DAX declined 2.3 percent. In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 plummeted 5.8 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and Shanghai’s Composite also saw losses.
Oil prices reached seven-month lows, with Brent crude falling 3.41 percent to $76.81 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate dropping 3.66 percent to $73.52 a barrel. Gold prices also retreated, falling 0.5 percent to $2,469.80 per ounce.
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