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President Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping tariffs has sent shockwaves through global markets, with the world’s richest individuals collectively losing billions in net worth. Wall Street reacted sharply to Trump’s decision to implement a baseline 10% tariff on all imported goods, effective April 5, alongside additional “individualized” tariffs as high as 50% on specific countries and regions.
The stock market plunged in response, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite each falling by more than 5% on Friday, following similar declines on Thursday. The drastic sell-off led to the largest two-day loss ever recorded by Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.
Billionaire Fortunes Plummet
Among the hardest hit were Tesla’s Elon Musk, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, who saw their fortunes shrink by $30.9 billion, $23.49 billion, and $27.34 billion, respectively, over the two-day period. The combined wealth loss among the world’s 500 richest individuals was unprecedented, according to Bloomberg.
Much of the trio’s wealth is tied to their companies’ stock values, which took heavy hits due to concerns over supply chain disruptions. The tech sector, in particular, has been vulnerable to the new tariffs due to its reliance on overseas manufacturing, semiconductor supply, and IT services from countries such as China, India, and Taiwan.
Trump’s tariff strategy includes a 32% tariff rate on Taiwan, a 26% rate on India, and an increase on Chinese imports, raising the total tariff burden on Chinese goods to 54%. CNBC’s Investing Club with Jim Cramer noted that a slowdown in the U.S. economy could further dent advertising revenues for tech giants like Amazon and Meta.
Musk’s Financial Setback and Tesla’s Struggles
Musk, who serves as a senior advisor in the Trump administration and heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), had already been experiencing financial setbacks in 2025. Tesla reported first-quarter sales of 336,681 vehicles on Wednesday, marking a 13% year-over-year decline—its worst quarterly performance since 2022.
Despite losing $130 billion this year, Musk’s net worth remains at an estimated $302 billion, keeping him well ahead of Bezos ($193 billion) and Zuckerberg ($179 billion).
While many billionaires suffered losses, others benefited from the market turbulence. Rocket Mortgage co-founder and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert saw his fortune grow by $1.91 billion on Friday, pushing his net worth to $32.4 billion. Meanwhile, Mexican business tycoon Carlos Slim initially gained $2.9 billion on Thursday before losing $5.48 billion the following day, according to Bloomberg’s index.
Slim, 85, who was the world’s richest person according to Forbes from 2010 to 2013, amassed his fortune primarily through Grupo Carso and telecom giant América Móvil.
Slim Predicts Tariffs as a Negotiation Strategy
In an interview with Bloomberg published Tuesday, Slim predicted that Trump’s tariffs would be temporary and serve as a negotiation tactic. Trump appeared to support this notion on Thursday when he stated that he was open to discussions on tariff rates with other countries, despite earlier White House claims suggesting otherwise.
“The U.S. doesn’t have any other alternative rather than changing how it does things,” Slim remarked.
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