In July, Gates was temporarily ranked as the world's third-richest person behind Bezos and Arnault for the first time in at least seven years, according to Bloomberg. Then, in a surge in Microsoft's stock price led Bill Gates to first overcome Arnault, and then temporarily end Jeff Bezos' two-year reign as the richest person on Earth on November 19.
Increasing Chinese demand for luxury goods has benefited Kering's Francois Pinaultand L'Oral's Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, in addition to Arnault.