Gringo No Longer World's Wealthiest Man

The number one spot on the Forbes billionaires list has been held by Bill Gates since 1995.  But thanks to recent gains in the stock price of America Movil (AMX), Gates appears to have been usurped by Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim.

Three months ago the cigar-chomping Mr Slim quietly slipped past legendary US investor Warren Buffett to take second place in the global wealth league.

Now, thanks to a surge in the shares of his America Movil group, Mr Slim has claimed pole position, according to the Mexican online financial publication, Sentido Común.
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This is estimated to have boosted his fortune to an estimated $67.8bn (£33.6bn) - equivalent to 8% of Mexico's gross domestic product - compared with $59.2bn for the Microsoft mogul, putting him in the lead by a decisive $8.6bn.

To put Slim's lead in context, his estimated net worth is roughly equal to the combined wealth of Bill Gates and George Soros.

America Movil shares have moved 40% higher over the last 6 months, while Microsoft's stock price is virtually unchanged over the same period.