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ZURICH (Reuters) – The world\u2019s richest people became a little less well off last year, according to a report by UBS (UBSG.S<\/a><\/span>) and PwC, as geopolitical turmoil and volatile equity markets reduced the wealth of billionaires for the first time since 2015. <\/p>\n Billionaires\u2019 wealth fell by 4.3% globally to $8.5 trillion last year, the UBS\/PwC report found, with a sharp decline in Greater China, including Hong Kong, and the Asia-Pacific region more broadly. <\/p>\n Private wealth in Hong Kong fell 4% in 2018 to $319.8 billion, the report showed, with months of anti-government protests in the Chinese-ruled city and an economic recession clouding the outlook this year. <\/p>\n Some Hong Kong tycoons have begun moving personal wealth offshore, Reuters reported in June, as concerns deepen over the protests. <\/p>\n \u201cWe haven\u2019t seen any significant outflows, we have been tracking some of these numbers on a regular basis,\u201d said Amy Lo, UBS co-head of Asia Pacific wealth management. \u201cOur clients have been diversifying all along, it\u2019s not in the last one year.\u201d <\/p>\n Private banks including the world\u2019s largest wealth manager UBS have felt the effects of U.S.-China trade tensions and global political uncertainties, as clients last year shied away from trading and taking on debt in favor of hoarding cash. <\/p>\n The net worth of China\u2019s richest dropped 12.8% in dollar terms on the back of tumbling stock markets, a weaker local currency and a slowdown in growth, the report found, knocking dozens off the billionaires list. <\/p>\n Despite the drop, China still produces a new billionaire every 2-2.5 days, UBS\u2019s head of ultra-high net worth clients, Josef Stadler, said in the report released on Friday. <\/p>\n Worldwide, the number of billionaires fell everywhere except in the Americas, where tech entrepreneurs continued to buoy the ranks of the United States\u2019 wealthiest. <\/p>\n \u201cThis report shows the resilience of the U.S. economy,\u201d where there were 749 billionaires at the end of 2018, said John Matthews, head of private wealth management and ultra-high net worth business for UBS in the United States. <\/p>\n While a stock market recovery from a steep drop in late 2018 has helped wealth managers increase their assets, the world\u2019s richest families remain concerned about global affairs from trade tensions and Brexit to populism and climate change and are keeping more of their money in cash. <\/p>\n \u201cIt is likely that billionaire wealth will go up again this year,\u201d said Simon Smiles, UBS\u2019s chief investment officer for ultra-wealthy clients, adding it would likely be a more muted increase than the wider financial market rally might suggest. <\/p>\n Reporting by Angelika Gruber and Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Additional reporting by Elizabeth Dilts and Sumeet Chatterjee; Editing by Mark Potter and Giles Elgood<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n [ad_2]
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