Lakshmi Mittal, Carlos Slim lose $10 billion in a week

LONDON: The world's richest man and the richest Indian lost, between
them, over $10 billion (around Rs 45,000 crore) in net worth due to
the global stock market crash. While steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal lost
$3.5 billion (around Rs 13,700 crore) due to the fall in his company's
share price, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim's wealth is reckoned to
have been depleted by $6.7 billion (over Rs 30,000 crore).

Mittal, a non-resident Indian who owns nearly 41% of ArcelorMittal, is
now estimated to be worth $16 billion though his fortune was eroded by
close to a fifth of its value last Sunday. Nonetheless, he remains the
UK's richest individual. ArcelorMittal employs 320,000 people in 60
countries.

A Bloomberg report said Slim's stock portfolio, measured in US
dollars, has dropped about 9.5% since July 29 and is valued at about
$64.4 billion. That compares with a 7.2% slide in the Standard &
Poor's 500 Index.

It was also a miserable week for the world's second richest and third
richest men, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. Before the Dow Jones made
a small recovery on Friday, Gates's Microsoft Corp slid a significant
5% while Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway dropped 4.3%.

The catastrophic six days for stocks on both sides of the Atlantic
increased fears that this meltdown will lead to a dreaded double-dip
recession. The fall meant that a mind-boggling £2.75 trillion had been
erased off the world markets in 10 days.

Mittal was not the only loser in this market mayhem in Britain.
Commodities trader Ivan Glasenberg, head of Glencore International
also suffered reverses. He lost £788 million as his share price fell
sharply by 13.2%. Others whose fortunes plummeted in Britain included
Mike Ashley, owner of Sports Direct International and Newcastle
Football Club. His worth was reduced by £203.4 million.

Former British finance minister, Alistair Darling, who dealt with the
2008-09 crisis, said: "I have always thought that we won't get a
double-dip recession here in the UK. If you asked me now, well it's on
the cards." The impact of this on emerging economies like China, India
and Brazil will not be favourable either, affecting exports and
growth.

Prime Minister David Cameron, holidaying in Italy, and his finance
minister, George Osborne, vacationing in California, interrupted their
breaks to demand action from European Union leaders. They urged them
to prop up the euro as a currency to prevent a worrying situation from
becoming worse. Britain blames the current calamity on the eurozone
nations' failure to initiate the bailout of Greece, which was agreed
upon two weeks ago.

(With inputs from agencies)

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