LVMH's Bernard Arnault went from being the world's richest person to flirting with fifth place after a $54 billion loss

• Bernard Arnault has gone from being the richest person in the world to being on the verge of falling to fifth place.

• The LVMH CEO's net worth has plummeted by $54 billion since its March peak, and by $30 billion so far this year.

• LVMH shares have fallen 16% this year as weaker demand has hit the company's sales and profits.

Bernardo Arnault He was the richest person on the planet Six months ago;Now he is flirting with fifth place.

Arnault is the founder and CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the French luxury goods giant. As of the end of March, his net worth was estimated at $231 billion, putting him ahead of Tesla's CEO. Elon Musk and the founder of Amazon Jeff Bezos at the top of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The fashion mogul's fortune has shrunk by $54 billion since then, to $177 billion at Wednesday's close. That puts him in fourth place and just $1 billion ahead of the Oracle co-founder. Larry Ellison.

Arnault’s net worth has plummeted by $30 billion this year, making him the biggest wealth loser among the 500 people on Bloomberg’s list. He’s also the only person among the 18 richest people who is in the red for 2024; the others have gained at least $14 billion and as much as $1 billion. 63 billion dollars.

Forbes’ wealth rankings tell a similar story: Arnault has fallen from first place, with a net worth of $233 billion as of March 8, to fifth, with a fortune of $175 billion, behind Musk, Bezos, Ellison and the Meta CEO. Mark Zuckerberg.

The hit to the “Wolf of Kashmir”'s wealth comes as LVMH's share price has fallen by 16% to its lowest level in two years. Arnault owns about 48% of the luxury conglomerate, which houses about 75 brands including Tiffany & Co., Louis Vuitton, Dom Perignon and Sephora.

LVMH shares have been hit by the company's troubles. In the first half of this year, the company struggled, with underlying revenue up just 2% and revenue from recurring operations falling 8%. Underlying profits fell 26% in the wine and spirits business, 19% in watches and jewelry, and 6% in the key fashion and leather goods segment.

Arnault also warned of a “climate of economic and geopolitical uncertainty” in the earnings release. Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported last month that Sephora was cutting its 4,000-person workforce in China by 10% to weather a crisis. Challenging local market.

The luxury industry flourished after the pandemic, when travel resumed and pent-up shopping demand was released. But it has fought More recently, record inflation, higher interest rates and recession fears have dampened demand even among wealthy consumers.

Read the original article at Business information