Iron ore surge puts Forrest up rich list

Fortescue Metals Group founder Andrew Forrest is now reportedly third on Australia’s rich list, thanks to a resurging iron ore price which has added $5 billion to his wealth.

According to multiple reports, Forrest’s wealth has risen by $5 billion this year thanks to the serious improvement in the health of the iron ore market.

Once in charge of FMG, ‘Twiggy’ Forrest now sits on the FMG board and owns roughly a third of the business.

Since opening 2016 at $1.87 on the ASX, Fortescue Metals Group’s share price now sits at roughly $6.50. That means Twiggy’s share in the company has risen from around $1.8 billion to around $6.5 billion in this calendar year alone.

While any rich list is unofficial and hard to properly quantify, Forrest’s surge in wealth almost certainly pushes him to third place in Australia, behind only Gina Rinehart and property developer Harry Triguboff.

Fortescue’s staggering 12-month rise is a product of its cost-cutting drive – which was triggered by the slump in iron ore price – combining of course with the bounceback in the iron ore price seen in the second half of 2016.