Bezos loses $16 billion in Amazon stock plunge

Jeff Bezos saw a dramatic $16 billion drop in his net worth on Friday as Amazon's stock plunged more than 9%, falling below $167 per share. This decline follows Amazon’s second-quarter earnings report, which revealed revenue of $147.9 billion—falling short of the expected $148.5 billion. The stock is on track for its worst performance since April 2022, when it also faced a significant drop after disappointing earnings.

Bezos’ stake in Amazon, comprising 928 million shares, saw its value drop from $170.8 billion at Thursday's close to approximately $154.9 billion. Despite this setback, Bezos remains the second-richest person globally with a net worth of $186.2 billion. The broader tech sector also suffered losses, with other top billionaires, including Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, and Mark Zuckerberg, each losing over $1 billion.

The market downturn was exacerbated by a Labor Department report showing the U.S. economy added 71,000 fewer jobs than anticipated, raising recession fears. Amazon CFO Brian Olsavsky had previously highlighted the company's significant investment in its cloud business and generative AI tools. These investments, while aimed at long-term growth, have contributed to concerns about the return on such hefty expenditures amidst the recent tech rally's reversal.

(Source: Forbes, by Ty Roush)