Hong Kong King

Hong Kong’s shipping elite dodged the credit crunch last year as close ties with China lined their pockets.

Helmut Sohmen slid down the list despite increased fortune.

Seven shipping names showed up among the Chinese territory’s 40 richest people, according to a list compiled by Forbes magazine.

Li Ka-shing continued to reign supreme at the top of the tree, with his fortune flying up from $16.2bn to $21.3bn over the past 12 months. Li beat property magnate Lee Shau Kee into second place.

Chen Din Hwa, a textiles man with shipping interests, claimed eighth shop with $3.2bn to his name. He finished narrowly ahead of Orient Overseas' boss Chee Chen Tung, who just missed out on a top ten berth despite a $2.89bn nest egg and a difficult year for the boxship owner.

Noble Group boss Richard Elman’s $2.3bn bank balance was good enough for 14th place. The father of four edging out Stanley Ho, who climbed two rungs to 17th after his fortune grew from $1.3bn to $2.1bn over the past 12 months. Forbes admits, however, some of Ho’s additional wealth comes from the availability of more accurate records.

Sliding down the list from 13th to 25th is BW boss Helmut Sohmen. His $1.39bn was up a shade on last year, but China helped others more.

Elman’s Noble colleague Harindarpal Banga narrowly missed out on joining the billionaires' league but a mere $890m was good enough for 37th place.

Forbes says China’s growth helped boost the wealth of Hong Kong’s elite by $53bn over the past 12 months. Not bad, but still $44bn short of the record seen in 2008.

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