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ELON MUSK LOSES TOP SPOT AS EARTH’S RICHEST PERSON

ELON MUSK LOSES TOP SPOT AS EARTH’S RICHEST PERSON
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Faith Nyasuguta

Elon Musk has been dethroned and he is now the world’s second richest person after Bernard Arnault the CEO of LVMH, the world’s largest maker of luxury goods.

This development comes just two days after the Tesla CEO reclaimed his crown as the world’s richest person.

He got bumped to the second position after his net worth fell by about $2 billion on Thursday to $184 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.  Mr. Arnault currently has a fortune of $186 billion.The role reversal happened just 48 hours after Musk knocked Arnault off the top spot. 

Bernard Arnault is the richest person on earth /

In December, the Frenchman had unseated Musk after Tesla’s share price fell by 65% in 2022 due to various factors including a lacklustre economy, a demand slowdown in China, Musk’s messy Twitter acquisition which dampened investor sentiment, and a broad-based tech selloff.

Musk’s slip from the top spot was occasioned by a drop in Tesla stock as shares closed 1.4% lower at $202.77 on Wednesday. They extended declines in after-hours trade to end 5.7% lower after Tesla’s Investor Day in Austin, Texas on Wednesday.

Since Bloomberg derives much of Musk’s net worth from his 13% stake in Tesla, a fall in share prices would hit his fortune.

It was projected that an investor sentiment could’ve taken a hit as Tesla did not unveil a budget-friendly electric vehicle at Wednesday’s event. There were market rumors before the event that Musk could announce a $25,000 car.

This week, Elon Musk confirmed reports that Tesla would build an auto factory, its fifth, in Monterrey, Mexico 🇲🇽/AP/

“It’s no surprise that Tesla stock fell over 5% in the hours following Tesla’s Investor Day, as it fell short for investors regarding details on any new Tesla products or services,” Greg Bassuk, the CEO of asset management firm AXS Investments, wrote in a Wednesday note seen by news outlets.

Chief Executive Bassuk noted that investors were underwhelmed as they were waiting for concrete details of Tesla’s plans to stay competitive in an increasingly crowded and price-sensitive EV market — but that did not materialize.

Tesla stock is still up 65% so far this year despite Wednesday’s setback following an improved demand after aggressive price cuts and favorable tax credit changes in the US for electric vehicles.

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Faith Nyasuguta

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