U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of reciprocal tariffs against global trading partners sent shockwaves through international stock markets, wiping out $208 billion from the world’s 500 wealthiest individuals in a single day. While Trump declared it “American Liberation Day,” U.S. billionaires took substantial hits. Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg saw $17.9 billion evaporate from his fortune, while Amazon’s Jeff Bezos lost $15.9 billion.
On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that the global market tumble following Trump’s tariff declaration marked the fourth-largest drop in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index’s 13-year history, surpassing any single-day losses since the height of the pandemic.
Over half of the top 500 billionaires saw their net worth decline, with an average decline of 3.3%. Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Meta, saw his personal wealth wiped out by $17.9 billion as Meta’s stock plummeted 9% – the day’s biggest dollar loss. Meta had been on a month-long rally until mid-February, adding over $350 billion to its market cap and outpacing other tech giants. It was a standout performer among the Magnificent 7 (Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta, Telsa, and Nvidia), but the stock has nosedived 28% since mid-February.
Bezos, the founder of Amazon, wasn’t far behind, losing $15.9 billion as the e-commerce giant’s shares tumbled 9%. Amazon’s stock has now plunged over 25% from its February peak.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a key Trump ally, saw $11 billion vanish from his net worth as Tesla shares fell 5.5%. Telsa’s stock has hemorrhaged $110 billion this year, plagued by delivery delays and Musk’s controversial political maneuvers. Despite a brief rally earlier in the week on speculation that Tesla’s U.S.-heavy production would shield it from tariff impacts, the stock tanked again following Trump’s announcement.
Europe’s richest man, LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault, also took a $6 billion hit as Trump’s proposed 20% tariff on EU goods sent Paris stocks reeling.
Mexican telecom tycoon Carlos Slim saw his wealth grow 4% after Mexico was exempted from the tariffs. Regionally, the Middle East emerged as the sole winner in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.