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Trump’s Trade War Just Came for His Own Billionaire Fan Club

Some of the richest guests at the president’s inauguration had a very rough day.

Billionaires who attended President Donald Trump’s inauguration saw billions wiped off their fortunes on Thursday as the president’s sweeping tariffs on U.S. imports sent global markets into free fall.

The market shock came after Trump announced the new levies on Wednesday afternoon, targeting more than 180 countries and resulting in the stock market’s worst single-day performance since the COVID pandemic.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index—a daily ranking of the world’s wealthiest people—several billionaires who attended Trump’s swearing-in on Jan. 20 saw massive declines in their personal wealth on Thursday due to the escalating trade war.

In total, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Bernard Arnault, Sergey Brin, Miriam Adelson, and Rupert Murdoch lost nearly $60 billion from their assets.

Elon Musk lost $11 billion. Now worth: $322B

The hits just keep on coming for Trump’s billionaire “first buddy” Elon Musk, who suffered sorely from the global market turmoil, with his net worth dropping by $11 billion on Thursday. Tesla’s stock had already been rapidly declining because of his role in the administration as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is on a mission to slash government spending.

Jeff Bezos lost $15.9 billion. Now worth: $201B

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos saw his fortune shrink by a whopping $15.9 billion as Amazon shares plummeted 9 percent, marking the company’s steepest one-day decline since April 2022. The company’s stock is now down over 25 percent from its peak in February, according to Bloomberg.

Mark Zuckerberg lost $19.9 billion. Now worth: $189B

But Bezos’ loss was eclipsed by the ill fortune of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the day’s biggest loser. The Facebook founder, who is trying just about everything he can to curry favor with Trump, lost a staggering $17.9 billion—around 9 percent of his total wealth. Meta’s stock was down 9 percent on Thursday.

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Bernard Arnault lost $6.22 billion. Now worth: $163B

Luxury goods titan Bernard Arnault, head of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and a longtime friend of the president, suffered a loss of $6.2 billion.

Sergey Brin lost $4.46B. Now worth: $130B

Google co-founder Sergey Brin also lost $4.5 billion in just a single day after Trump unveiled his sweeping tariffs. If he’s not sure of the sums, he can Google it easily enough today.

Miriam Adelson lost $942 million. Now worth: $31.6B

Adelson’s huge wealth was amassed through casinos. Her late husband, Sheldon Adelson, founded the Las Vegas Sands casino and resort company. Not a good time to bet on the markets.

Rupert Murdoch lost $590 million. Now worth: $11.9B

The media baron lost a tidy sum, and the content of some of his outlets suggests he’s not sold on the tariffs scheme.

“I think it’s going very well,” Trump told a reporter on Thursday when asked for his thoughts on the aftermath of his tariffs announcement.

Some of his wealthy supporters may beg to differ.

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Isabel van BrugenFreelance Writer

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