China declares developer its richest tycoon
By AP Wire Service on Sep 12, 2013, at 2:33 AM Updated on 9/12/13 at 4:27 AM
FYI
The TCC StartUp Cup's search for entrepreneurial excellence narrowed its scope to six finalists Tuesday.
John Chandler, chief financial officer of Magellan Midstream Partners LP, will leave the partnership at the end of March, the Tulsa-based company announced Tuesday.
BEIJING (AP) - A billionaire Chinese real estate developer who bought one of the biggest U.S. cinema chains last year has emerged as the country's new richest tycoon.
The Hurun Report, which follows China's wealthy, said Wednesday that a surge in stock prices helped to boost the number of Chinese worth at least $1 billion by 64 to 315 this year, compared with none a decade ago. The top five saw their wealth double.
Wang Jianlin, whose Dalian Wanda Group Co. operates hotels, cinemas and department stores, was ranked No. 1 for the first time on Hurun's annual list of Chinese tycoons with a fortune of $22 billion. Last year's No. 1, beverage entrepreneur Zong Qinghou, was second with $18.7 billion.
Wang's company bought AMC cinemas last year for $2.6 billion in the biggest Chinese acquisition of a U.S. company to date.
The latest rankings reflected the rapid changes in China's economy and shifts in wealth from one industry to the next.
One in four of the 1,021 people on the Hurun Rich List made their money from real estate, which passed manufacturing to become this year's top source of wealth. Hurun said 559 of those on the list saw their wealth grow while 252 saw their fortunes shrink.
Real estate prices in China have soared, driven partly by a flood of government spending and bank lending in response to the 2008 global crisis. That is despite government curbs imposed on lending and purchases to cool housing costs.
China's richest woman was Yang Huiyan at No. 5 with $8.3 billion.
Original Print Headline: Chinese developer is declared richest tycoon
FYI
The TCC StartUp Cup's search for entrepreneurial excellence narrowed its scope to six finalists Tuesday.
John Chandler, chief financial officer of Magellan Midstream Partners LP, will leave the partnership at the end of March, the Tulsa-based company announced Tuesday.
