Illustrative photo – Elon Musk speaks in Norway on August 29, 2022.
New York – The head of the American car company Tesla, Elon Musk, has again become the richest person in the world, according to Bloomberg's list of billionaires the world. This year's growth in Tesla shares helped him to do so. In December, Musk was replaced at the top of the list by French businessman Bernard Arnault, co-owner of the LVMH group, which sells luxury goods. Arnault is now second in this ranking, still first in another ranking.
Advertisement'; }
Tesla shares rose by 5.5 percent on Friday, which increased the value of Musk's assets to USD 187.1 billion (CZK 4.2 trillion), according to the ranking of billionaires compiled by the Bloomberg agency. Arnault's fortune is 185.3 billion USD.
According to Forbes magazine, which determines the ranking of the richest people based on a different methodology, Musk remains the second richest person in the world. Forbes estimates Musk's fortune at nearly $200 billion, while Arnault's fortune is more than $200 billion.
At the beginning of this year, Musk's fortune was 137 billion USD. Last year, Musk became the first person in the world to lose $200 billion in wealth, sparking speculation that he may struggle to regain the title of the planet's richest person. Tesla shares, however, have already gained 100 percent from their long-term low, which they fell to on January 6. Investors are once again betting on riskier growth stocks amid signs that the economy is strong and that US interest rates will rise more slowly. Tesla is also benefiting from higher demand for its electric cars, as it has reduced the prices of several models.
Musk donated 11.6 million Tesla shares to charity between August and December last year. The stake was valued at $1.9 billion at the time the shares were donated.
Tesla shareholders were concerned that Musk was paying too much attention to Twitter, which he bought last October. At the same time, Tesla faces increased competition across the industry. Musk said in December that he would step down as head of Twitter once he found someone “crazy enough” to take the job. He recently stated that he would need to stabilize Twitter's finances by the end of the year before handing the company over to a new CEO.
