The Fortune Global 500 is out today. The annual ranking of the largest companies in the world by revenue follows the publication of the Fortune 500 (June 4), which lists U.S. companies only; the Fortune Southeast Asia 500 (June 18), which Fortune compiled for the first time this year; and the Fortune China 500 (July 25), assembled by the Fortune China team. The second annual edition of the Fortune 500 Europe list is slated to publish this autumn.
The Global 500 reflects many of the trends we’ve detected on the region-specific lists earlier this year, because in many cases, performance trajectories of sectors transcend geography. Financial-sector companies, for instance, make up the majority of companies on the Fortune 500 (92 out of 500), Southeast Asia 500 (67), and on the Global 500, the proportion is even greater (116). Those 116 generated a combined $8.6 trillion in revenue—up 21% from the prior year—and $923 billion in profits.
One shift at the top of the list: Saudi Aramco, ranked No. 2 on the Global 500 in 2023, fell two spots this year to No. 4. Amazon instead claimed second place, behind long-reigning Walmart. Energy companies worldwide collected less revenue last year given lower oil prices—Sinopec, Exxon Mobil, and Shell felt it, too. The industry’s revenues fell by 14.6% and profits fell by 18% year over year. Still, Saudi Aramco remained the most profitable company on the Global 500 for the third year in a row: It netted $121 billion in the past year, and its combined total profits for the past five years clocks in at $523 billion.
