Developers leap 500 places after nearly tripling their fortune, while steel magnate Mittal retains top spot despite losing billions

The Candy Brothers have shot up nearly 500 places in the Sunday Times Rich List, published yesterday. The Surrey-born luxury residential property developers are at 156th-equal on the list, with an estimated £330m. They are up from £210m last year, a rise of 175%.

The Candys have already exchanged contracts on their £741m under-construction development One Hyde Park, on which the main contractor is Laing O'Rourke.

Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal has had £16.9bn wiped off his fortune, yet stays at the top of the list. He was worth £33bn in June last but only £10.8bn this year, having made his fortune turning around ailing steel works across the world.

Meanwhile, the property-owning Duke of Westminster remains at number three on the list, despite having lost £500m. This includes £190m of provisions and writedowns in the 80 empty stores at his Grosvenor Group's Liverpool One shopping centre.

The Reuben Brothers are also feeling the pinch, despite moving from number 10 to number nine on the list. Their property-based fortune is down £1.8bn, with their main property firm, Aldersgate Investments, having written off £530m. The pair made over £1.3bn in Russia in the 1990s, restructuring the aluminium industry.

And despite bullish comments earlier in the year, Irish construction magnate Ray O'Rourke has lost £200m during the year and tumbled from 199th to 243th place.