Xi’s zero-covid rules shrink fortunes of China’s richest

ALMOST $573bn (£492bn) has been wiped off the fortune of China’s wealthiest people as Xi Jingping’s strict zero-covid policy hammers the country’s economy.

The net worth of the 100 wealthiest people in China plunged by 39pc to $907.1bn, down from $1.48 trillion last year. This is the largest drop in wealth in over two decades according to Forbes.

Among those making the list, only two people were richer than a year ago.

The worsening fortunes of China’s wealthiest are symptomatic of the country’s wider economic ills.

Zero-covid policies have plunged vast swathes of the country into continuous lockdowns, hampering production and consumer demand.

Meanwhile, President Xi has led a crackdown on big tech, and the real estate sector has faltered.

Forbes also blamed the yuan’s 12pc decline against the dollar and highlighted that China’s benchmark stock index had lost over a quarter of its value since the last list was published.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index had also dropped almost 41pc.

China is expected to grow at a slower pace than the rest of Asia for the first time in three decades, according to World Bank forecasts. Zhong Shanshan, who is the chairman of China’s biggest bottled water company, remains the country’s wealthiest person, with his fortune only taking a 5pc hit.

He also invested heavily in a company supplying Covid tests, according to Forbes.

Robin Zeng, the chairman of the world’s largest electric vehicle battery maker, CATL, took the third spot, although his net worth has taken a massive 43pc hit.

Other notable tycoons include Jack Ma, the founder of Chinese e-commerce giant, Alibaba, who saw his riches nearly halve to $20.6bn. He ranks in fifth place.

Meanwhile, Hui Ka Yan, the chairman of real estate giant Evergrande, which came close to collapse, has slipped off the list.

The minimum net worth needed to make the list was $3.5bn this year, down from $5.74bn.