Yang Huiyan, a 26-year-old woman worth $16.2 billion, is China’s richest person, according to the new Forbes list. From USA Today:
The China list’s rankings change sharply from year to year, reflecting the rapid evolution of the booming economy, which expanded by 11.9% in the most recent quarter.
This year, there were 20 new names among the list’s top 40 richest people, Forbes said.
Yang was one of 12 real estate developers among the top 40, Forbes said.
All 40 were billionaires, up from only 15 last year, the magazine said. The combined net worth of the top 40 also rose sharply, from US$38 billion in 2006 to $120 billion this year. [Full text]
