Biggest personal fortunes concentrated in Asia. - According to the Chinese magazine Hurun Report, Asia is now home to the highest number of billionaires, followed by North America and Europe. Out of the 1,453 people whose personal fortunes on 1 January 2013 exceeded $US 1 billion, 608 were in Asia, 440 in North America and 324 in Europe. The accumulated wealth of these huge fortunes is estimated to be around $5,500 billion, equivalent to the GDP of Japan, the third biggest economy in the world in 2012. Per country, the US continues to have the highest number of billionaires, with 408, followed by China, which has 317. Thereafter come Russia, Germany and India. The richest man in the world is 73-year-old Mexican Carlos Slim who has a personal fortune of $66 billion. According to last year's US Forbes magazine's wealth list, Slim was classified as having the biggest fortune in the world. US investor Warren Buffet ($58 billion) is in second place, ahead of Amancio Ortega from Spain ($55 billion), founder of the “Zara” retail group. According to the Chinese publication, 2012 experienced a rebound in the wealth of the private sector. The wealth of the ten richest individuals rose by 22%, equivalent to $250 million a day in total. This wealth was mainly generated in the real estate, telecommunications, media and distribution sectors. One significant detail emerging from the Hurun Report is that the real number of billionaires in the world could be three times higher because some of them illegally conceal their wealth, whilst others keep a low profile. (IL/transl.fl)