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Collective wealth gets a 21% boost to a record $162 billion amid an economic uptick.

- JANEHO AND NAAZNEEN KARMALI

Following a 2% contraction in 2020, Indonesia’s economy is expected to grow nearly 4% this year, fueled partly by rising commodity exports. With the emergence of the Omicron variant, the nation, which was battered by COVID-19 earlier this year, is going all out to prevent a third wave with stricker controls on international arrivals as well as Christmas and new year holiday restrictions. The benchmark stock market index rose over 19% since we last measured fortunes, helping to lift the combined net worth of the 50 richest by over 21% to $162 billion, up from $133 billion last year.

Nearly three-fourths of the listees saw their fortunes rise this year, with eight adding $1 billion or more. Brothers R. Budi and Michael Hartono retained the top spot with a net worth of $42.6 billion. They were the biggest dollar gainers this year, adding $3.8 billion, thanks mainly to rising shares of Bank Central Asia as investors piled into bank stocks.

The Widjaja family of the Sinar Mas conglomerate was among the seven on the list who saw their wealth decline this year due to lower sales and profits in the group’s paper business. Despite their fortune falling $2.2 billion to $9.7 billion, the Widjajas remained at No.2. Anthoni Salim, whose diversified Salim Group runs businesses from food to telecom, reclaimed his position as Indonesia’s third-richest after a four-year gap. Salim’s net worth got a 44% boost to $8.5 billion, as his investments in rising stars such as Emtek and data center operator DCI Indonesia paid off.