Mukesh Ambani is Asia's richest person again, overtakes Chinese billionaire Jack Ma: Forbes
India has world's 3rd highest number of billionaires
New York, Apr 7: India has the third highest number of billionaires in the world after the US and China, according to a new list by the prestigious Forbes magazine, which said Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani reclaimed his spot as Asia's richest person, dethroning Chinese business tycoon Jack Ma who was the richest person in the region a year ago.
Forbes' 35th annual list of the world's billionaires is topped by Amazon CEO and Founder Jeff Bezos for the fourth year in a row.
His net worth is USD 177 billion, up USD 64 billion from a year ago as a result of surging Amazon shares, Forbes said.
On the second spot is SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who was the biggest gainer in dollar terms. Musk's fortune ballooned to USD 151 billion, a whopping USD 126.4 billion more than a year ago, when he had ranked 31 and was worth USD 24.6 billion, it said.
The main reason: a 705 per cent climb in Tesla shares, Forbes said.
Ambani, the richest person in India and also the wealthiest in Asia, is ranked 10 on the global billionaires' list. He reclaimed his spot as Asia's richest person with a net worth of USD 84.5 billion.
Ambani has become the richest person in Asia, ranked Number 10 and worth an estimated USD 84.5 billion. He nudges out Jack Ma of China, Asia's richest person a year ago, whose rank dropped to 26 (from 17 last year) despite a nearly USD 10 billion jump in his fortune to USD 48.4 billion, Forbes said.
Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, the second richest person in India, is ranked 24th on the global list of billionaires with a net worth of USD 50.5 billion.
Chairman of the Poonawalla Group and founder of the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, Cyrus Poonawalla is ranked 169th on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires with a net worth of USD 12.7 billion.
Poonawalla ranks seven on the list of Indian billionaires. Founder of HCL Technologies Shiv Nadar, the third richest person in India, is ranked 71st globally and has a net worth of USD 23.5 billion.
The three richest Indians alone have added just over USD 100 billion between them, Forbes said.
At 724, the US has more billionaires than any other country in the world (up from 614 last year). China is closing the gap with 698 billionaires, up from 456 last year.
As a result of the gains in China, Beijing is home to more billionaires than anywhere in the world, overtaking New York City, Forbes said.
India has the third highest number of billionaires, with 140, followed by Germany with 136 and Russia with 117.
Forbes said the 1,149 billionaires from Asia-Pacific countries together are worth USD 4.7 trillion, while the US billionaires are worth a total USD 4.4 trillion.
On the global list, 106 are under 40. The youngest billionaire is 18-year-old Kevin David Lehmann of Germany, whose father Guenther Lehmann transferred his stake in drugstore chain dm-drogerie mkt to him. His worth is USD 3.3 billion and ranks 925 on the list, while the oldest billionaire is 99-year old US insurance tycoon George Joseph, it said.
The number of billionaires on Forbes' 35th annual list of the world's wealthiest exploded to an unprecedented 2,755 -- 660 more than a year ago, altogether worth USD 13.1 trillion, it said.
There are a record high 493 newcomers to the list, roughly one new billionaire every 17 hours, including 210 from China and Hong Kong and 98 from the US
French billionaire Bernard Arnault, who oversees an empire of 70 brands, including Louis Vuitton and Sephora, is the third richest person in the world with a net worth of USD 150 billion, followed by chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates (USD 124 billion), Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (USD 97 billion).
The top 10 richest are worth USD 1.15 trillion, up by two-thirds from USD 686 billion last year. Altogether, Europe's billionaires are USD 1 trillion richer than a year ago.
The richest woman this year is cosmetics heir Francoise Bettencourt Meyers of France, who with a net worth of USD 73.6 billion is ranked 12th.
India's top 10 billionaires include DMart founder Radhakishan Damani, Kotak Mahindra Bank CEO Uday Kotak, Executive Chairman of ArcelorMittal Lakshmi Mittal, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group Kumar Mangalam Birla, founder of Sun Pharmaceuticals Dilip Shanghvi and Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises Sunil Mittal.
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US vetoes Palestinian bid to gain statehood at the United Nations
United Nations, Apr 19: The US has vetoed a resolution in the UN Security Council on the latest Palestinian bid to be granted full membership of the United Nations, an outcome lauded by Israel but criticised by Palestine as “unfair, immoral, and unjustified".
The 15-nation Council voted on a draft resolution Thursday that would have recommended to the 193-member UN General Assembly “that the State of Palestine be admitted to membership in the United Nations.”
The resolution got 12 votes in its favour, with Switzerland and the UK abstaining and the US casting its veto.
To be adopted, the draft resolution required at least nine Council members voting in its favour, with no vetoes by any of its five permanent members - China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Palestinian attempts for recognition as a full member state began in 2011. Palestine is currently a non-member observer state, a status that was granted in November 2012 by the UN General Assembly.
This status allows Palestine to participate in proceedings of the world body but it cannot vote on resolutions. The only other non-member Observer State at the UN is the Holy See, representing the Vatican.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz praised the US for vetoing what he called a “shameful proposal.”
“The proposal to recognise a Palestinian state, more than 6 months after the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust and after the sexual crimes and other atrocities committed by Hamas terrorists was a reward for terrorism”, Katz wrote on X, after the US veto.
US Ambassador Robert Wood, Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs, said in the explanation of the vote at the Security Council meeting on Palestinian membership that Washington continues to strongly support a two-state solution.
“It remains the US view that the most expeditious path toward statehood for the Palestinian people is through direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority with the support of the United States and other partners,” he said.
“This vote does not reflect opposition to Palestinian statehood, but instead is an acknowledgement that it will only come from direct negotiations between the parties.”
Wood said there are “unresolved questions” as to whether Palestine meets the criteria to be considered a State.
“We have long called on the Palestinian Authority to undertake necessary reforms to help establish the attributes of readiness for statehood and note that Hamas - a terrorist organisation - is currently exerting power and influence in Gaza, an integral part of the state envisioned in this resolution,” he said, adding that “For these reasons, the United States voted “no” on this Security Council resolution.”
Wood noted that since the October 7 attacks last year against Israel by Hamas, US President Joe Biden has been clear that sustainable peace in the region can only be achieved through a two-state solution, with Israel’s security guaranteed.
"There is no other path that guarantees Israel’s security and future as a democratic Jewish state. There is no other path that guarantees Palestinians can live in peace and with dignity in a state of their own. And there is no other path that leads to regional integration between Israel and all its Arab neighbours, including Saudi Arabia,” he said.
The Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, sharply criticised the US veto, saying that it was “unfair, immoral, and unjustified, and defies the will of the international community, which strongly supports the State of Palestine obtaining full membership in the United Nations.”
Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine, said that “our right to self-determination has never once been subject to bargaining or negotiation.
“Our right to self-determination is a natural right, a historic right, a legal right. A right to live in our homeland Palestine as an independent state that is free and that is sovereign. Our right to self-determination is inalienable...,” he said.
Getting emotional and choking up as he made the remarks, Mansour said that a majority of the Council members “have risen to the level of this historic moment” and have stood “on the side of justice, freedom and hope.”
He asserted that Palestine’s admission as a full member of the UN is an “investment in peace.”
On April 2, 2024, Palestine again sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres requesting that its application for full UN membership be considered again.
For a State to be granted full UN membership, its application must be approved both by the Security Council and the General Assembly, where a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting is required for the State to be admitted as a full member.
Earlier in the day, Guterres, in his remarks to a Council meeting on the Middle East, warned that the region is on a “knife edge”.
“Recent escalations make it even more important to support good-faith efforts to find lasting peace between Israel and a fully independent, viable and sovereign Palestinian state,” Guterres said.
“Failure to make progress towards a two-state solution will only increase volatility and risk for hundreds of millions of people across the region, who will continue to live under the constant threat of violence,” he said.
The UN, citing the Ministry of Health in Gaza, said that between October 7 last year and April 17, at least 33,899 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and 76,664 Palestinians injured. Over 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals, including 33 children, have been killed in Israel, the vast majority on October 7.
As of April 17, Israeli authorities estimate that 133 Israelis and foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, including fatalities whose bodies are withheld.
