Tech billionaires’ nightmare: How Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk lost $30 billion overnight | – Times of India

On Monday morning (August 5), the US stock market witnessed almost a carnage– with all three major Indexes suffering substantial losses. This decline was fueled by a combination of disappointing economic data, reported growing dissatisfaction with the Federal Reserve’s approach to managing inflation and concerns about instability in some international markets.

Economic factors contributing to the decline

According to an ET report, the market decline was triggered by an unexpectedly weak jobs report released on Friday, which showed the US unemployment rate hit 4.3 percent, the highest level since October 2021.The report raised fears that the Federal Reserve had delayed rate cuts for too long, prompting concerns that urgent measures might be needed to prevent a severe economic downturn. Investors were worried about the potential for rapid interventions by the central bank to address these economic challenges.

How global Stock markets responded

The numbers sent tremors across stock markets worlwide:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: Experienced its worst day in over two years, plummeting by 1,034 points or 2.6 percent
Nasdaq: The tech-heavy index fell by 3.4 percent, largely due to increasing scepticism about AI technology
S&P 500: Declined by 3 percent

Cryptocurrency prices were also affected:

The downward trend extended globally, with significant impacts observed in international markets. Notably, Japan’s Nikkei index suffered its largest single-day drop since “Black Monday” in October 1987, falling by over 12 percent. However, the Nikkei rebounded on Tuesday morning, surging more than 8 percent in early trading, as per reports.

Impact on Tech titans

The global sell-off had a substantial impact on the net worth of leading tech billionaires, resulting in nearly $30 billion in combined losses for Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Elon Musk in a single day.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos

Jeff Bezos, the co-founder and executive chairman of Amazon, was the hardest hit. Following a 9 percent drop in Amazon shares on Friday, which cost him $15 billion, Bezos experienced an additional $8 billion loss on Monday. This marked his second-worst financial loss ever, following the $36 billion loss from his 2019 divorce settlement. As of late Monday, Bezos’ net worth was estimated at $185 billion by Bloomberg and $180.1 billion by Forbes.

Facebook and Instagram parent Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta (formerly Facebook), saw his net worth decrease by $7 billion on Monday, bringing it to $164 billion. This decline came after Meta shares dropped by 1.9 percent on Friday, resulting in a $3.39 billion personal loss. Despite these setbacks, Zuckerberg’s net worth had increased by $45.6 billion earlier in the year, the largest gain among the ten richest individuals globally. Forbes estimated his net worth at $171.2 billion as of Monday night.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk

Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, experienced a $6 billion drop in his net worth on Monday, reducing it to approximately $227 billion. This decline was tied to a 6 percent drop in Tesla shares, compounded by recent losses and controversies surrounding Musk’s various ventures.