This story appears in the February 8, 2015 issue of Forbes Asia. Subscribe to Forbes Asia
Ranking Royalty
Li Ka-shing's fortune continues to rise despite a lackluster Hong Kong economy in 2014 ("Hong Kong's 50 Richest" ). Fortunate Mr Li. I am fascinated by FORBES' lists of the world's richest but perplexed by the fact that extremely rich monarchs, stalwart political leaders and families often elude the lists. Some have lots of cash stashed away offshore and covert assets, many of them with a combined fortune likely far exceeding that of Li or even Bill Gates.
Titan Monn
Chiang Mai, Thailand
FORBES has on occasion tallied the wealth of specific tyrants, royalty and politicians, but because their wealth is often tied to their official position (or nation) and is hidden or murky, we don't include them on our annual lists. -Eds.
Chips Are Down in Macau
Visiting Macau in August 2014 I noticed a glaring change. While the popular casinos had been fully lit and decorated in and out to attract and lure people, the gambling tables in the halls appeared far less crowded than before ("A Run of Bad Luck for Macau Casinos"). Chinese are born risk-takers. Beijing's drastic anticorruption move must have dampened the spirit of those gamblers, particularly the big-timers, and made them avoid casinos in Macau for fear of revealing their surreptitious identities. At least for now Macau's revenue will be hit hard. Why not promote tourism?
Chen-Zi Hua
Shanghai
Sun's Rise
Sun Pharmaceutical has grown too big for comfort, especially after acquiring its popular counterpart Ranbaxy ("The Unstoppable Rise of Dilip Shanghvi"). Sun will eventually possess a monopoly for a number of drugs sold in India, and that will make it formidable. India has a huge market for relatively cheap drugs that benefit the poor greatly. We hope big pharmaceuticals will continue to produce medicines at affordable prices for the sake of the masses of poor.
Benedict Tagore
New Delhi
Stay Vigilant
Lee Kuan Yew ("Depending on Your Neighbors to Protect You") has given details of how Singapore strives to prevent the lethal Ebola spread, having had the benefit of hindsight in the struggle with SARS a decade ago. Arresting the spread of such deadly viruses needs full collaborative effort of all nations connected by airplanes, especially neighboring countries, for viruses know no boundaries. Ebola recently claimed over 8,000 lives officially, almost all in West Africa, but it seems to be dying down. Cautious monitoring and control remain a must.
Tan Boon Tee
Kemaman, Malaysia
