China rich list topped by machinery tycoon

A machinery tycoon tops a list of China’s billionaires released by the Hurun Report’s China Rich List 2011 on Wednesday, AFP reported. Liang Wengen, co-founder of construction firm Sany topped the list with US$11 billion in assets, up from fourth place last year. Zong Qinghou, founder of China beverage giant Wahaha dropped to second place with US$10.7 billion. China search engine magnate Robin Li tookthe third spot. The annual top 1,000 rich list contains 271 billionaires, up from 189 last year, with entry value at US$310 million, up from US$220 million in 2010. While the top spots are no longer dominated by real estate magnates as in the past, more than half of the top 50 richest still count property as one of the main sources of their wealth.