HONG KONG: Li Ka-shing again topping the newest list of richest Hongkongers may come as little surprise, but his staying on top while his wealth was cut in half is nothing less than a sign of the times.

Hong Kong's 40 richest residents shed more than half of their combined wealth as the global financial meltdown has taken a heavy toll on their pocketbooks.

The total wealth of the 40 plummeted from $179 billion to $82 billion in the past 12 months, Forbes magazine says in the newly released annual "Hong Kong's 40 Richest" list.

The number of billionaires also dropped from more than 40 to 19.

Topping the list again is head of Cheung Kong Holdings and Hutchison Whampoa, Li, despite his net worth falling from $32 billion to $16.2 billion.

Second richest on the list is the feuding Kwok family, which controls Sun Hung Kai Property with a net worth of $10.8 billion, their fortune also shrunk by 55 percent.

Walter Kwok, Sun Hung Kai's long-standing chairman, was cut off from the company last year by his two younger brothers, Raymond and Thomas, because of a power struggle within the family. Their 79-year-old mother later assumed the role as a non-executive chairperson.

Rounding out the top three is Lee Shau Kee, the chairman of Henderson Land Development and known as Asia's Warren Buffett. His wealth was pared by $14 billion, putting his current worth at $9 billion.

The five richest men in the top-three position all maintained their previous ranking in 2008. They also lost a combined $43 billion.

The biggest loser, in terms of percentage, was Macao gaming tycoon Stanley Ho. His net worth plunged 89 percent, from $9 billion to $1 billion. The casino kingpin fell from fifth on the list to 19th.

The shrinkage of Ho's fortune was largely due to an ill-timed public offering of his Macao gaming company Sociedade de Jogos de Macao, which went public just as investors were fleeing casino stocks.

The financial downturn, however, has made room for newcomers. One apparent beneficiary was Michael Chan, chairman of budget Chinese restaurant chain Cafe de Coral.

(HK Edition 02/06/2009 page2)