Even the rich and famous have been hit by the recession!
The famous Forbes Magazine Rich list of the world's billionaires has been drastically reduced after its release this week. In total 332 names have been taken off last year's list of world billionaires because the economic slump has severely impacted upon wealth around the globe. While there are still 793 billionaires on the list, each one has seen a reduction in the value of their assets by around 23% on average.
It will come as no surprise to see that Bill Gates now tops the league of the richest people in the world with Warren Buffett only $3 billion behind Bill Gates's total of $40 billion. Third place goes to Carlos Slim Helu and family (experts in communications) with a wealth valued at $35 billion. If nothing else the list shows that even those at the elite end of the business spectrum are suffering substantial losses in the ongoing economic downturn although Bill Gates has his $40 billion and is hardly struggling for cash!
While each and every recession obviously impacts upon each and every area of the economy there is no doubt that the ongoing worldwide recession has hit many harder than feared. Many of those on the Rich list in the past will likely never reappear again with many fashionable industries struggling in the current economic downturn.
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