Rich defy economic slowdown

Manufacturing replaces property as nation's chief source of wealth

Zong Qinghou, the 67-year-old founder and chairman of the drinks giant Wahaha Group, is China's wealthiest person, according to this year's annual China Rich List published by Hurun Report Inc, making him only the third person in 14 years to retain the crown.

Owning 80 percent of Wahaha, China's largest and most profitable drinks business, Zong and his family's fortune has risen to 80 billion yuan ($12.6 billion), up from $10.7 billion last year, helped by the company's net profit of $1 billion last year. According to the latest list of China's super-rich, five of the top 10 come from the real estate sector.

Wang Jianlin, 58, chairman and president of Dalian Wanda Group, saw his personal wealth soar 44 percent to $10.3 billion, giving him the second spot.

In early September, Wang shook up the entertainment industry with the $2.6 billion acquisition of the US' second-largest cinema chain, AMC Entertainment, but Wanda's core business remains its property arm, particularly its shopping malls, which last year had a turnover of $16 billion.

Meanwhile, Ma Huateng, 41, founder and chief executive officer of the Chinese Internet company Tencent Inc, is a new name to the top 10 list, coming in at seventh with a personal wealth of $6.5 billion.

Tencent is the largest company by market share in the list, with a market capital of $65 billion.

"China's rich have defied the global financial crisis with another record year of growth," said Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of the Hurun Report, who began publishing it in 1999.