iPhone Billionaire Enters Taiwan Politics as Wealth Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Foxconn Group Founder Terry Gou is aiming for the highest job in Taiwan just as his net worth, built on assembling iPhones for Apple Inc., fell to the lowest in more than six years.

That’s not to say Gou, whose listed companies include Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., FIH Mobile Ltd. and Japan’s Sharp Corp., is a pauper. His fortune is about $4.5 billion, ranking him No. 3 in Taiwan, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Still, Gou’s wealth was as high as $7.3 billion in June 2017, and he was Taiwan’s richest person as recently as April 2018. The value of his companies has dropped amid concerns about demand for iPhones and the ongoing U.S.-China trade war.

Gou’s foray into politics, which he launched by announcing a bid for the presidency Wednesday, hasn’t hurt his fortune. Shares of Hon Hai have risen more than 21 percent in April.

Tsai Eng-meng, chairman of Want Want China Holdings Ltd. and Samuel Yin of Ruentex Group are currently No. 1 and No. 2 on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, at $6.1 billion and $4.8 billion, respectively.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lee Miller in Bangkok at lmiller@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: John Liu at jliu42@bloomberg.net, Samson Ellis, Adrian Kennedy

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