The ultra-rich owners of the world's leading luxury brands took a hit to their fortunes on Tuesday.
Declines in LVMH and Kering shares cut the value of Bernard Arnault and François Pinault's stakes.
Luxury stocks slumped after China's economic planners failed to detail their stimulus measures.
The billionaires behind some of the world's most iconic fashion brands took a blow to their fortunes on Tuesday as disappointed investors dumped luxury stocks.
Bernard Arnault, the founder and CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, owns nearly 49% of Dior and Sephora's parent company, filings show. LVMH shares fell as much as 7% in Paris on Tuesday, slashing the value of his stake by about $13 billion, before paring their decline to 3%.
Arnault ranked as the world's fourth-richest person with a $197 billion net worth at Monday's market close, per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. He was the wealthiest person on the planet a few months ago, but flagging demand for luxury goods in China has cut LVMH stock by 11% this year, and his wealth by more than $10 billion.
One of only two people on Bloomberg's rich list who've lost more money this year is Arnault's arch rival, François Pinault — the founder of Gucci and Balenciaga owner Kering.
Kering shares tanked by as much as 8% on Tuesday, trimming the value of Pinault's roughly 41% stake by more than $1 billion, before narrowing their decline to 5%. Pinault was 83rd in the wealth rankings with a $24 billion fortune at Monday's close, down more than $11 billion this year.
Other luxury names suffered similar declines, shrinking the fortunes of their biggest shareholders too. For example, the Dumas family owes most of its estimated $150 billion fortune to Hermès stock, which slid 3% on Tuesday.
Former Richemont CEO Johann Rupert's family derives the bulk of its $14 billion fortune from the company behind Cartier and Piaget, which dropped 3%.
Moncler CEO Remo Ruffini isn't quite rich enough to appear on Bloomberg's index (the lowest-ranked person is worth almost $6.4 billion), but Forbes pegs his net worth at $3.4 billion. The ski-jacket maker's stock also fell 3% on Tuesday.
Chanel isn't publicly traded, but Bloomberg's list shows that co-owners Alain and Gérard Wertheimer were worth about $46.6 billion apiece at Monday's close. Given the valuation declines across many other luxury brands on Tuesday, they're probably worth less now.
The selloff was sparked by China's economic planners holding a press conference but not detailing their stimulus plans. The promise of interest-rate cuts, looser bank regulations, liquidity support, and even a stock stabilization fund had boosted markets worldwide.
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