The new Financial Review Rich List has let some interesting tidbits drop about Australia’s super-rich, and there are plenty of surprises this year. Although the number of billionaires in the country has grown to a whopping 161 individuals (from 150 in the previous year), the collective wealth of the top 10 fell, from $222 billion to $202 billion. That’s a 9.2% fall, which is mostly attributed to fluctuations in the iron ore market impacting mining tycoons adversely.

What’s especially notable is the way family break-ups have rearranged the deck chairs for Australia’s rich and powerful. We’ve witnessed some spectacular changes in positions, with split spouses now listed as individual entries, and the geographic distribution indicates NSW is leading the charge with 81 wealthy listers, followed by Victoria with 55.

Here is the full list of who’s sitting comfortably at the top of Australia’s wealth hierarchy this year.

1. Gina Rinehart: $38.11 billion

The iron ore queen retains her stranglehold on the top position for the sixth year in a row, although her kingdom has lost $2 billion in value. Rinehart’s mining ventures remain the reason for her riches, even as iron ore prices have waned. Her industry dominance places her well out of reach of the pack, regardless of the recent fall. Mining is still the biggest wealth-creation sector in Australia, and Rinehart shows the trend to perfection – the $2 billion decline looks huge, but it hardly makes a dent in her dominant position atop Australian riches.

2. Harry Triguboff: $29.65 billion

The apartment king has enjoyed a superb year, increasing his wealth by 12% as others struggled. As owner, managing director and founder of Meriton, Australia’s biggest private apartment developer, Triguboff has accessed the nation’s continuous demand for housing like no other. While market conditions are still testing elsewhere, his insight into property cycles and development prospects has helped him to defy the trend and substantially expand his wealth when many of his wealthy peers have watched theirs decline.

3. Anthony Pratt and family: $25.85 billion

The Visy-packing dynasty has moved higher up the list, the family’s fortune increasing from $23.3 billion in 2024. Pratt added to his family’s packaging enterprise while sustaining high-profile friendships in business and politics. The family’s continued growth proves that traditional manufacturing industries can still generate enormous returns when you know how to work the system.

4. Scott Farquhar: $21.42 billion

The former Atlassian CEO has stepped back from day-to-day operations but hasn’t slowed down – he’s now chairing charity group Pledge and leading the Tech Council of Australia. Following the construction of Atlassian into a software giant with Mike Cannon-Brookes, Farquhar’s interests are now turning towards philanthropy and influencing Australia’s tech policy agenda. His enormous holding in Atlassian continues to build serious fortunes while he uses his power to advocate for things he cares about, demonstrating how Australia’s tech billionaires are growing up beyond mere money-making.

5. Clive Palmer: $20.12 billion

The brash mining tycoon rises to fifth place despite having his wealth decrease by almost 12% and his political fortunes battered in the just-concluded federal election. Palmer’s publicity-driven campaigning failed to bring out what he had hoped, but his interests in mining are strong enough to have him firmly take a seat in the top five. His capacity to hold the line and endure both wealth loss and political losses just goes to show how deep his pockets actually are – the man can take some serious blows and yet continue to swing.

6. Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht: $14.14 billion

This tech power couple has leaped four spots as their graphic design business Canva, charges ahead into AI territory, showing that Australian technology can hold its own on the world stage. The married co-founders began their business 13 years ago and have vowed to donate much of their fortune in the future – they’re part of that next generation of technology tycoons who wish to give back more than just fund their bank accounts.

7. Michael Dorrell: $13.9 billion

This year’s biggest shock – Dorrell is the most-valued entry in Rich List history. The co-founder of Stonepeak has been quietly constructing his infrastructure empire since he abandoned Macquarie in 2011, and today his firm oversees $101 billion with almost 250 employees working across global investments. Talk about flying under the radar, constructing an empire – his tale is evidence that not all wealth building occurs in the limelight, and occasionally, the best money moves are made when no one’s paying attention.

8. Ivan Glasenberg: $13.85 billion

The ex-Glencore CEO jumps to a position even as his fortune falls from $14.86 billion, which says something about the trouble that everyone else has had. As the largest shareholder in the commodity trading behemoth, his fortune tracks with global commodity prices, and those markets have been quite crazy in recent times. Glasenberg’s ongoing presence at one of the globe’s largest commodity traders has him wired into global trading relationships that stretch across several continents, so when trade flows around the world change, he feels the impact straight in his bank account.

9. Nicola Forrest: $12.83 billion

In one of the most spoken-about wealth changes of the year, Nicola now tops her estranged husband Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest, who’s fallen from second position in 2023 all the way down to 11th. From their 2023 split, she came away with control of slightly more Fortescue shares than he, creating one of the most sensational wealth redistributions in Australian wealthy list history. Although their relationship broke up, both of them continue to collaborate on their Minderoo Foundation philanthropic efforts.

10. Kerry Stokes: $12.69 billion

West Australian media tycoon completes the top 10, operating Seven West Media and Seven Group Holdings and spearheading his state’s phenomenal wealth creation. Stokes’ breaking into the exclusive top 10 club is an indication of just how much Western Australia over-achieves – the state has 18 individuals on the wider rich list, which isn’t bad for a state with fewer than 3 million inhabitants. His combination of media clout and diversified business interests demonstrates that the old-fashioned strategy of spreading your bets across multiple industries can still pay off handsomely.

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The North Korean border appears like any other war zone with guard posts and barbed wire. But hidden among them are enormous green speakers blaring South Korean pop music and announcements across the divide.

This is another type of conflict between North and South Korea. While both nations haven’t exchanged guns in years, they’re engaged in an information war that could decide the fate of Kim Jong Un’s rule.

USB Drives Smuggled over the Border

Several methods are employed by South Korea to reach information into North Korea. Pop music and news are broadcast through official government loudspeakers. But the actual smuggling occurs undercover by means of small organizations that transfer content over the border.

Each month, units package thousands of memory cards and USB drives. They include South Korean television dramas, movies, news, and music. Smugglers then transport them across the Chinese border into North Korea at high personal risk. The material is grouped by level of danger. Entertainment such as K-pop songs and Netflix shows is found in low-risk drives. Those with high risk carry data on human rights and democracy that Kim’s government dreads most.

TV Shows Defy North Korean Propaganda

South Korean dramas may appear innocent, but they show the way people actually live in the South. Characters are seen in contemporary apartments, driving good cars, and dining at restaurants without restraint. This goes right against North Korean propaganda that South Koreans are poor.

“Some told us that they cried when they watched these dramas, and that they forced them to reflect on their own aspirations for the first time,” says Lee Kwang-baek of Unification Media Group. Foreign content has inspired recent defectors to leave everything behind to leave North Korea. There is no institutional opposition in the nation, so acts of resistance by individuals are that much more important.

Kim Jong Un Increases Punishments

Kim Jong Un has retaliated with severe actions. During the coronavirus pandemic, he constructed electric fences along the border with China to prevent smuggling. New 2020 legislation doubled penalties for watching foreign media, with some of its distributors liable for execution.

The regime now treats South Korean influence as a serious crime. Using South Korean phrases or accents became illegal in 2023. “Youth crackdown squads” patrol streets, monitoring young people’s behavior, clothing, and hairstyles for South Korean influence. Police regularly confiscate phones to check text messages for banned South Korean terms. Smartphones now automatically delete South Korean words, replacing them with North Korean versions.

Trump Cuts Aid to Information Programs

The information war has new challenges. Recently, President Trump reduced funding to a number of organizations that were attempting to enlighten North Koreans. He also cut funds to Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, which broadcast every night into North Korea.

These reductions have muffled some of the only windows North Koreans had to the world beyond. Groups such as Unification Media Group now await to discover whether their funding will be cut permanently.

Information War Rages On, Despite Repression

In spite of the repression, its supporters are optimistic. Decades of foreign broadcasts have already altered a great many North Korean minds, and that can’t be taken away.

With advancing technology, disseminating information should become even easier. The problem is whether there will be sustained support for this silent war that may one day change one of the world’s most closed-off nations.

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At a crowded rally in Pittsburgh on Friday, President Donald Trump announced a big change to trade policy. Starting Wednesday, the taxes on steel and aluminium imports will go up from 25% to 50%.

Trump wants to enhance American manufacturing, thus, this decision is made for foreign steel manufacturers, especially those from China. He told a crowd of steelworkers that this measure would protect employment and increase production in the United States.

$14 Billion Investment Promise

Trump said he wanted to make a big investment in Pennsylvania’s steel industry. The pact calls for US Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel to work together to invest $14 billion in local production plants.

He promised the ecstatic gathering, “There will be no layoffs and no outsourcing at all.” As part of the deal, Obama also pledged that every US steel worker would get a $5,000 incentive. But neither corporation has formally disclosed the facts of the partnership. It’s still not obvious how the agreement will work, especially when it comes to who owns it and runs it.

Keeping American Steel Safe

The president said that raising the tariff was necessary for the safety of the country. Adding that America can’t keep its military strength or economic independence without a strong steel sector. During his hour-long speech, Trump stated, “You don’t have a country if you don’t have steel. What should we do? Can we get steel from China to make our army tanks?”

He credited his original 25% steel tariffs from 2018 for saving US Steel, which is the biggest steel company in the U.S, and the new 50% tariff would make it almost impossible for international companies to compete.

Tensions in Global Trade Rise

This announcement makes the trade problems between the US and China worse. The two economic titans have been fighting over tariffs in a series of retaliatory wars that have messed up global markets.

Trump said last week that China had broken a recent trade deal made in Geneva. US officials argued that China did not keep its promise to get rid of some trade barriers, but Beijing refuted these assertions.

According to industry figures, China makes more than half of the world’s steel, making it the world’s largest producer of steel. In terms of steel production, the US comes in fourth after China, India, and Japan.

Legal Issues

Trump’s bigger tariff plans are still being fought in court. Most tariffs are still in place, although some trade duties were stopped by lower courts before the appeals court made its decision. The steel and aluminium tariffs that were announced on Friday are still in place, despite ongoing legal issues. This makes the government feel good about going ahead with the higher charges.

Impact In The Industry

Steelworkers have conflicting sentiments about working with companies from other countries, especially when it comes to job security and union contracts. The proposed merger with Nippon Steel would keep US ownership and leadership, which should help ease these worries.

Reports say that the Japanese business would put $14 billion into the deal over 14 months, but the US would still be in charge of manufacturing choices. It is said that the government would have the right to stop any future reduction in production. The deal also says that output levels must stay the same for at least ten years and that US nationals must occupy important board and leadership posts.

As trade ties around the world change, these rules will probably only work if they find a good balance between protecting American businesses and the reality of doing business around the world.

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