Friends Of STAR

Carlos Slim, (this guy is an Arab) the world's richest man, lost about $6.7 billion this week.

The Mexican billionaire's stock portfolio, measured in U.S. dollars, has dropped about 9.5 percent since July 29 and is valued at about $64.4 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with a 7.2 percent slide in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.

Slim, 71, has taken a hit as Mexico's benchmark IPC index dropped 6.4 percent and the peso slid 2.3 percent against the dollar on concerns that the flagging U.S. economy will hurt demand for assets in its southern neighbor. The removal of three of Slim's companies from the IPC index has made matters worse for the billionaire.

"He's been particularly hurt by those companies leaving the IPC," said Leon Cabrera, a trader at Mexico City-based Vanguardia Casa de Bolsa. "It reflects the nervousness out there. It's part of being in the market."

America Movil SAB, the biggest wireless carrier in the Americas and Slim's largest asset, has declined a relatively benign 6 percent this week. Its Telefonos de Mexico SAB unit has been Slim's only gainer in Mexico, rising 11 percent on the parent company's offer to buy out minority shareholders.

The Standard & Poor's index extended its decline today, falling 0.1 percent at close. The IPC rose 1.1 percent, and America Movil gained 1.1 percent.

Buying Opportunity

The drop in America Movil, which has fallen 20 percent this year as regulators seek to put a dent in its 70 percent share of Mexico's mobile-phone market, is an opportunity for investors to buy stock in a solid company, Cabrera said yesterday in a telephone interview.

Even measured in Mexican pesos, Slim's holdings have dropped about 7.3 percent this week, a bigger decline than the broader Mexican market. Bolsa Mexicana de Valores SAB, the Mexican stock exchange operator, said Aug. 2 that it would drop Slim's Grupo Financiero Inbursa SAB, Inmuebles Carso SAB and Grupo Carso SAB from the IPC index as part of an annual rebalancing.

Inbursa, Slim's financial-services firm, slid 8.2 percent this week, while Inmuebles Carso, a real estate firm, declined 11 percent, and Grupo Carso, a holding company with retail and construction units, fell 14 percent.

Slim was named the world's richest man for a second year in a row by Forbes magazine in March. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, second and third on the magazine's list, have had better weeks, at least for their biggest holdings.

Gates's Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) dropped 6.3 percent this week. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A) slid 3.9 percent.

Arturo Elias, a spokesman for Slim, declined to comment in an e-mail - http://www.bloomberg.com

Just Who Is Carlos Slim (family name: Salim)

Slim was born in Mexico City, Mexico in 1940 to Arab parents Julián Slim Haddad and Linda Helú, both of Lebanese descent. His father, born Khalil Slim Haddad, immigrated to Mexico at the age of 14 in 1902 and changed his first name to Julián. As it was not uncommon for Lebanese children to be sent abroad before they reached the age of 15 to avoid being conscripted into the Ottoman army, four of Haddad's older brothers were already living in Mexico at the time of his arrival.

Carlos Slim's mother, Linda Helú, was born in Parral, Chihuahua, of Lebanese parents who had immigrated to Mexico in the late 19th century. Her parents upon immigrating to Mexico had founded one of the first Arabic language magazines for the Lebanese-Mexican community, using a printing press they had brought with them.

In 1911, Julián established a dry goods store, La Estrella del Oriente (The Star of the Orient). By 1921, he had purchased real estate in the flourishing commercial district of Mexico City. These enterprises became the source of considerable wealth.

In August 1926, Julián Slim and Linda Helú married. They had six children: Nour, Alma, Julián, José, Carlos and Linda. Julián senior, who had been influential in the Lebanese-Mexican business community, died in 1953.