French billionaire Bernard Arnault saw his fortune decrease by more than $ 9 billion (about $ 53 billion) on Tuesday (15) after a strong drop in LVMH shares, his luxury brands conglomerate. The devaluation of 7.53% was driven by below -expected quarterly results, marking one of the worst performance of the industry giant.
According to Forbes estimates, Arnault – president and CEO of LVMH – had its equity reduced to US $ 146.5 billion (R $ 862.7 billion). Despite the fall, he follows as the richest man in Europe and the sixth in the magazine’s global billionaires ranking.
LVMH reported a 3% decline in sales of the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year, contrary to market projections, which expected growth of 2%, according to Reuters. The largest setbacks were recorded in wine and distillate divisions (-9%) and fashion and leather items (-5%).
The Birkin bag manufacturer reached € 243.65 billion (R $ 1.618 trillion) – – in market value, momentarily exceeding € 243.44 billion (R $ 1.616 trillion) of LVMH.
Hermès shares also fell lightly on Tuesday, with a drop of about 0.3%, being negotiated at US $ 2,650.76 (€ 2,342.00) in the Parisian market.
The deterioration in LVMH numbers reinforces signs of slowdown in global demand for luxury articles, especially in China and the United States, and deepens pressure on Arnault led conglomerate, which faces increasing competition from Hermès – a company he tried to acquire in a frustrated investment 15 years ago.
