It's Been a Much Better Year for Mexico's Billionaires Dolia Estevez - Forbes
go to original March 20, 2017

Carlos Slim, Mexico's richest person (Susana Gonzalez/Bloomberg)

Mexico's billionaires are now richer than a year ago. Despite a weak currency and a sluggish economy, the combined net worth of Mexico’s billionaires climbed 17%, from $99.6 billion in 2016 to $116.7 billion, according to the 2017 Forbes Billionaires list released Monday. Their aggregate wealth, however, is still below the $148.6 billion of their 2013 peak year.

With a net worth of $54.5 billion, Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helú, Mexico's richest person, is $4.5 billion richer than in 2016. Nevertheless, Slim moved down for the second consecutive year in the 2017 Forbes world’s billionaires rankings from number four to number six position, the first time he’s been out of the top five in a dozen years.

Slim has slid from No. 2 (2014 and 2015) to No. 4 (2016) to No. 6 in 2017. Meanwhile, his fortune has plunged from $73 billion in 2013 to $54.5 billion now. In 2016 he was the biggest dollar loser on Forbes Billionaires List.

In 2014, Slim lost the richest-person-on-the-planet title to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates who, according to Forbes data, has held the title 18 of the past 23 years.

Slim's business empire kept momentum despite new anti-monopoly measures that triggered a process of breaking up América Móvil, the biggest wireless telecom and pay TV provider in Latin America which is controlled by Slim and his children. To compensate, Slim turned more aggressively to other sectors such as infrastructure. In 2016, his companies were awarded several major government projects including the construction of parts of Mexico's City new mega international airport.

Aside from Slim, there are 14 Mexicans on this year's billionaires list, including the same members of last year's list, with the exception of one newcomer Juan Francisco Beckmann Vidal, CEO and majority owner of tequila maker Jose Cuervo, and one returnee, steel baron Rufino Vigil González.

Read the rest at Forbes

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