The total assets of 40 richest Malaysians surged to RM 217.82 billion (about 66.1 billion U.S. dollars), as of Jan 18, from 194.86 billion a year ago, according to a research of Malaysian Business. “Overall, the steady increase of their wealth can be attributed to share market performance and price inflation, given that their wealth is largely based on their shareholdings,” Malaysian Business said. “It is also reflective of the performance of their companies and Malaysia’s positive economic growth over the past 12 years,” Malaysian Business added. In this 40 richest Malaysians list, there are 33 billionaires, and 29 of the 40 in the list see their assets increasing from last year.