Is investing abroad because the U.S. is going through a rough patch a good idea? If so, why? What foreign markets are attractive? Investing abroad is a good idea -- but not because the U.S. is melting down. Instead, it turns out that emerging markets are outperforming developing ones because they are supplying the commodities that fuel demand for 10% annual growth in emerging markets like China and India.

Emerging markets are up 20% in the last year while developed markets like the U.S. are flat. The reason to invest in these markets is not so much because the U.S. is going through a rough patch but more because these other markets are doing so much better and they are going to continue to do well regardless of what happens in the U.S.

But the U.S.'s rough patch may not be as bad as people had thought. An economist at Wachovia Corp. (NYSE: WB) changed his estimate of the chances of a recession from 90% to 45%. So the U.S. may turn out to be a good place to invest if stocks are priced for a recession that doesn't happen.

Mukesh Ambani is the chairman, managing director, and largest shareholder of Reliance Industries, India's largest private sector enterprise. With its wide-ranging operations, Reliance Industries has been called India's General Electric (NYSE: GE), and Ambani's personal stake in Reliance Industries is around 48 percent.

Ambani's net worth of US $20.1 billion early in the year made him the world's 14th richest person and the second richest person in India after steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal. However, by October, Ambani's net worth had more than doubled, making him the richest Indian, and number four in the world, just behind Warren Buffett. In fact, a strong, temporary share price rally for Reliance at the end of October brought Ambani's net worth to $63.2 billion, making him briefly the richest man in the world.

But that isn't the only highlight for Ambani in 2007. Construction also began on his home, which is expected to cost US $1 billion, and be one of the tallest structures in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), the equivalent of a 60-story building. The glass tower will include a plush movie theater, a health club with a pool, gardens and terraces, and parking for 168 automobiles, as well as an in-house garage to service them. Living space for the family near the top will have a view of the Arabian Sea, and the roof will have three helipads. It will take a domestic staff of 600 to run the place, which was designed by an architecture firm from Chicago to be reminiscent of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Yes, it's been a very good year for Mukesh Ambani, and also for his wife, to whom he gave an Airbus 319 as a birthday gift.

Be sure to check out more Money Winners of 2007.

Seems the world economy is growing and changing so fast that staying on top for very long will become harder. Carlos Slim of Mexico did not retain the title very long, as CNBC is reporting Meet the World's New 'Richest Person' -- For Now, a story about Mukesh Ambani. It has been reported that he is just completing a ONE BILLION DOLLAR HOME! Here's how the Indian press reports rank the world's top five richest people as of today, based on known public stock holdings:

• Mukesh Ambani - $63.2 billion
• Carlos Slim Helu - $62.2993 billion
• William (Bill) Gates - $62.29 billion
• Warren Buffett - $55.9 billion
• Lakshmi Mittal - $50.9 billion

To me, this all amounts to creating headlines, since the slight difference between one, two, and three could be altered with a single day's stock movement. Given that Ambani is on the other side of the world with great fortunes in Europe and Asia it could change back and forth depending on which stock exchanges are open at the time. In a rising market you could go to sleep as the richest person in the world and wake up to find you were overtaken, only to find by the close of the market you were on top again.

What's more important is who is taking what actions. What are these supernova rich guys doing with their wealth? In the case of Gates and Buffett, they have become the world's biggest philanthropists. Carlos Slim has expressed a desire to share his wealth as well by setting up a $10 billion foundation -- I'm not sure how far he has gone with that idea. Mittal is still busy buying up all the steel production on the planet, and is now the largest player in the market. That will increase his wealth for now. On the other hand, the Hunt Brothers of Texas thought that way in the 1970s about silver, and found out rather quickly that was not their brightest idea. Steel is likely a much better bet.