Bill Gates just lost $2.2 billion from his personal fortune

A bad day for one of the richest men in the world.

US stocks took a deep plunge plunge  yesterday, with the Dow Jones industrial average (DJIA) dropping 1,175 points, or 4.6% to close down at 24,345.75. The DJIA is a price-weighted average of 30 significant stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ. It came as investors reacted to changes in the outlook for the American and global economy - and what those changes might mean for the cost of borrowing. The US Labour Department also released employment numbers which showed stronger growth in wages than was anticipated. CMC Markets analyst Michael McCarthy told the BBC the wage numbers "blew lower interest rates out of the water". "The share selling....reflects a higher than previously anticipated interest rate environment," Mr McCarthy said. All of this had terrible consequences for some of the richest men in the world, including the richest man to ever live Jeff Bezos, who lost $3.2 billion; Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, who lost $3.6 billion; and finally Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who was down $2.2 billion. https://twitter.com/scottbudman/status/960658293906579456 Not a great day at the office then.