Fortune Global 500 list of 2023: Walmart tops the list followed by Saudi Aramco and State Grid

On 2nd August 2023, Fortune, a global media organisation released the 69th edition of Fortune Global 500 list of 2023, an annual ranking of the largest 500 corporations across the world as measured by total revenue for Fiscal Year 2023(FY2022-23). Walmart tops the list for the 10th consecutive year, followed by Saudi Aramco and State Grid in the 2nd and 3rd positions respectively.

• Walmart, an American (United States of America (US)) Retail and Wholesale company with USD 611.3 billion in revenue;
• Saudi Aramco, a Saudi Arabian (United Arab Emirates (UAE)) Mining and Crude-Oil Production company with USD 603 billion; and
• State Grid, a Beijing (China)-based power company owned by the Government of China with USD 530 billion in the 3rd position.

Note

• Saudi Aramco earned the highest annual total ever for a Fortune Global 500 company with USD 159 billion.

Key Points:

i.The companies are ranked by total revenues for their respective fiscal years ended on or before March 31, 2023.

ii.The list was released on the basis of the parameters such as Revenues, Profits, Balance sheet, Employees, Medians, and Credits.

iii.Companies on the 2023 list employ 70.1 million people across the world and are based in 232 cities and 33 countries/territories and regions around the world.

iv.The Fortune Global 500 list generated record-high aggregate revenues of USD 41 trillion, which is more than one-third of the world’s Gross domestic product (GDP).

2023 Fortune Global 500 Rankings by Geography

i.China tops the 2023 list with a total of 142 companies in the geographical regions in mainland China including Hongkong and Taiwan.

ii.2023 Ranking featured 142 Chinese companies, 136 US companies, 41 Japanese companies, 30 German companies.

• The US company with the highest profits in 2023 was Apple with USD 100 billion.

Categories:

The list includes the following categories: Newcomer to the Global 500; World’s Most Admired Companies; Fastest Growing Companies; Dropped in Rank; Female Chief Executive Officer (CEO); Fortune 500; Gained in Rank; Growth in Jobs; Best Companies; Profiatble; Change the World; Non US Companies.

• The number of women CEOs of Fortune Global 500 companies rose to 29 in 2023, it was 24 in the 2022 edition.
• There were 39 newcomers in 2023, including 23 companies making their debut, such as Warner Bros. Discovery (449), first-time Chinese companies, Contemporary Amperex Technology (292), and Meituan (467).

8 Indian Companies Featured in the 2023 Fortune Global 500 list with Reliance Industries Ranked High at 88
Reliance Industries, led by Billionaire Mukesh Ambani, featured in the Fortune Global 500 list of 2023.Reliance Industries climbed 16 places and now holds a rank at number 88 in the Fortune Global 500 list of 2023.The company has gained 67 places in the last 2 years from number 155 in 2021.

• Among the 8 Indian Companies on the list, Reliance Industries maintained its highest ranking.
• The other Indian companies on the list are: Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), Indian Oil Corporation (IOL), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, State Bank of India (SBI), Tata Motors, and Rajesh Exports.
• Reliance Industries in the 2022 list held the rank at number 104. The rank at number 88 is the best-ever achievement of Reliance Industries in the Fortune Global 500 list.

Ranking of Other Indian Firms:

• LIC was first featured in the Fortune Global 500 list in 2022. In 2023, it slipped 9 places to 107 from 98 in 2022.
• IOC jumped 48 places to rank at number 94, it was 142 in 2022.
• ONGC was ranked number 158, it was 190 in 2022.
• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd at number 233, was 295 in 2022.
• SBI was placed at number 235 on the list, it was 236 in 2022.
• Tata Motors climbed 33 positions at number 337, it was 370 in 2022
• Rajesh Motors climbed 84 places to number 353, 437 in 2022.

Saudi Aramco Emerged as Most Profitable Company in the Fortune Global 500 list of 2023, Ranked 2nd in the List by Revenue
Saudi Aramco (also known as Saudi Arabian Oil Company), is one of the largest integrated energy and chemicals companies in the world in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ranked 2nd in the annual list of Fortune Global 500 list of 2023 and it has emerged as the most profitable company ever on the list, earning USD 159 billion in the fiscal year 2022.

• It jumped up 4 places, from number 6 in 2022 to no.2 in 2023 list.
• Walmart tops the list with USD 611.3 billion in revenue, which was up by 6.7% compared to 2022 followed by Saudi Aramco (603 billion); State Grid, a China-based power company owned with USD 530 billion in the 2nd and 3rd places in revenue respectively.

Key Points:

i.Saudi Aramco reported a net profit of USD 161.1 billion for 2022, up from USD 110 billion in 2021, and a record net earnings result for the company.

ii.With the most profitable business in the world, Saudi Aramco has about USD 3.2 trillion to invest by 2030.

iii.Aramco’s vast oil profits play a vital role in generating investments by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) in the sports industry. Saudi pro soccer league signed a nine-figure contract with some of the European soccer players.

Table of Top 10 Companies in the Fortune Global 500 list of 2023:

Recent Related News:

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been included in the 25th edition of FORTUNE magazine’s list of the “World’s Most Admired Companies” for 2023.

About Fortune 500

• Fortune 500 companies are ranked by total revenue for their respective fiscal years. The list is compiled and published annually by Fortune magazine.
• The concept of the Fortune 500 was created by Edgar P. Smith, a Fortune editor, and the first list was published in 1955.

Penned by – Monica Rajendran