Wealth

The most powerful people in the world in 2018

Staff Writer

 ·9 May 2018

Forbes has released its latest ranking of the most powerful people in the world.

To compile the ranking, it looked at four main categories including whether the candidate has power over lots of people, the financial resources controlled by each person, if the candidate is powerful in multiple spheres, and whether the candidates actively used their power.

Using these criteria Forbes found that Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China, seized the top spot for the first time ever after China’s congress amended its constitution in March, broadening his influence and eliminating term limits.

He replaces Russian president Vladimir Putin who has reigned at the top of the list for the last four years. Despite the lower ranking Putin also consolidated further power this year when he was re-elected to a fourth term in earl 2018 – with nearly 77% of the vote.

US President Donald Trump was named as the third most powerful person in the world despite the controversy surrounding him, primarily because of his control over the world’s greatest economic and military power.

In contrast, Germany’s Angela Merkel was ranked as the fourth mosr powerful person in the world because of her perceived power not only as a leader in Germany but across the European Union.

The world’s richest man and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (ranked 5th),  Pope Francis (ranked 6th) who is the the spiritual leader of more than a billion Catholics, and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un (ranked 35) are other notable inclusions.

South African-born Elon Musk was ranked as the 25th most powerful person in the world due to his ower in the auto business through Tesla Motors, his power in the aerospace industry through SpaceX, his wealth as a billionaire, and because he’s a highly respected tech visionary, Forbes said.

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