It's tough at the top for China's billionaires
By John Garnaut, Beijing | smh.com.au | 14 October
Clouds move in ... Shi Zhengrong fell to 59th on the rich list as the price of solar panels dropped. Photo: Sasha Wolley
The ranks of China's US dollar billionaires have swelled from three to 130 in just five years, while the rest of the world wallows in economic crisis.
But China's newest new rich, like BYD car maker Wang Chuanfu, had better enjoy what they have got as quickly as they can because it may not last.
This year's Hurun Rich List shows that last year's champions have hurtled back down the charts even faster than they rose.
Last year's leader, Gome electronics founder Huang Guangyu, is sitting in an undisclosed Communist Party detention centre facing undisclosed charges relating to alleged financial crimes.
His fortune has crumbled from more than $US8 billion ($8.8 billion) to $US3.4 billion, allowing him to be overtaken by electronics arch rival Zhang Jindong, at Suning.
Zhu Mengyi, of Hopson Development, is still hanging on to fifth place but is rumoured to be in government detention in connection with the same case involving Huang Guangyu.
He has not been publicly sighted for six months.
Last year's no. 2, Du Shuanghua, has hurtled down to 39th place after the Shandong provincial Government decided to buy his Rizhao Steel operations at a fraction of the market price.
Another steel maker, Zhang Zhixiang, has plunged from 10 to 31 after officially-connected mafia groups foiled his takeover bid for Tonghua Steel – by throwing his right hand man out of his office building and beating him to death.
Other top 10 losers include Rong Zhijian, a "Red Chip" capitalist whose Citic Pacific company gambled and lost on an extraordinary "hedging" deal on the Australian dollar (down from 5 to 37).
China's solar panel tycoons are also down on their luck. Australian citizen Shi Zhengrong (Suntech) fell from no.7 to 59 and Peng Xiaofeng (LDK Solar) fell from no.4 to 155 as competitors flooded the market and the price of solar panels collapsed.
"This represents the biggest shake-up of the Top 10 since Hurun Report started the rankings in 1999," said Hurun Rich List founder Rupert Hoogewerf.
Seven of this year's top 10 are new arrivals. This year's winners are major beneficiaries of China's economic stimulus. Wang, whose share of BYD is worth $US5.1 billion, shot from 103 to no.1 in the space of a year in part because of Chinese Government support for his new generation of "green cars".
He also benefited from a timely 10 per cent investment by Warren Buffett. Zhang Yin, a paper recycler, is in second spot.
Six of the remaining positions in the top 10 are taken by property developers and the other two spots are occupied by aluminium makers – all major beneficiaries of Government support.
"Rebounding capital markets and property prices pushed the collective net worth of The Hurun 1000 ... up $US130 billion in the past 12 months from $US439 billion to $US571 billion," Mr Hoogewerf said.
The price of admission to the Top 1000 has jumped from $US100 million to $US150 million in a year.
Mr Hoogewerf said there are still many Chinese billionaires that his team has not yet discovered.
China's average rich lister is 50 years old, 15 years younger than their US and European counterparts. And they have been in business on average for just 16 years.
First published by Smh.com.au on October 14 2009
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