Chinese dumpling maker on billionaire list

A Chinese dumpling maker and a Mexican telecom mogul are among a record 946 billionaires with a combined wealth of US$3.5 trillion (€2.6trillion), according to Forbes magazine’s 2007 rankings of the world’s richest people.

The rich cashed in on strong equity markets, real estate and commodity prices worldwide, said Forbes billionaires co-editor Luisa Kroll.

Leading the list are Microsoft founder Bill Gates, ranked number one for the 13th year, beating friend and fellow philanthropist Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.

Gates’s fortune rose £3bn (€4.4bn) to £29bn (€42.6bn) last year, while Buffett garnered in an additional £5.2bn (€7.6bn) to boost his net worth to £27bn (€39.6bn).