The richest people in the world are named as Forbes publishes its latest rich list.

Mexican Carlos Slim Helu has knocked Microsoft magnate Bill Gates off the top of the 2010 Forbes Rich List as the US magazine publishes its latest list of the world’s wealthiest people.

Slim is a 70-year-old telecommunications mogul in Mexico and according to reports has accumulated his wealth through various shareholdings, including a 6.4% share in The New York Times Company. According to Forbes, Slim’s net worth is estimated to be $53.5 billion (£35.5bn)

The Mexican has moved up two places in the last year to overtake Americans Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. 79-year-old Buffet, who is considered one of the most successful investors of all time, was the last person to knock Gates from the top position when in 2008 his personal wealth was estimated at around $62bn.

Only three Europeans made it into the top ten: Frenchman Bernard Arnault, the founder and Chairman of Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) a luxury goods conglomerate which markets a number of well-known brands including Christian Dior and Marc Jacobs; Spanish fashion entrepreneur Amancio Ortega; and German Karl Albrecht, the Co-Founder of discount supermarket chain Aldi.

Forbes Top Ten Billionaires:

1.    Carlos Slim $53.5bn
2.    Bill Gates $53bn
3.    Warren Buffett $47bn
4.    Mukesh Ambani £29bn
5.    Lakshmi Mittal $28.7bn
6.    Lawrence Ellison $28bn
7.    Bernard Arnault $27.5bn
8.    Eike Batista $27bn
9.    Amancio Ortega $25bn
10.    Karl Albrecht $23.5bn

Lakshmi Mittal is the only member of the Forbes Rich List to reside in the UK. Although of Indian origin, the steel magnate, who is the CEO and founder of ArcelorMittal is considered the richest person in the UK.

Americans dominate the rest of the top 25 in Forbes’ list, with Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page moving up two places to become joint 24th in the list alongside brothers Charles and David Koch with individual net worths of $17.5bn. At 36, Brin is the youngest of the billionaires.