http://www.forbes.com/2006/03/30/largest-public-companies_06f2k_cz_sk_0331forbes2000intro.html
It's only 2,000, not 5,000, but I think it will help. Read this article.
The World's Largest Public Companies
Scott DeCarlo 03.31.06, 6:00 AM ET
New York -
The Forbes 2000 is not only a comprehensive list of the world's largest, and most powerful, public companies. It is also unique in its way of measuring corporate size. Our logic for using sales, profits, assets and market value in a composite ranking: a list based on a single metric provides a lopsided view of which companies are most important to the world's economy.
Selecting the largest companies strictly on sales would put Google, with $6.1 billion in revenues, way down in rank, even though it is the world's 36th-largest company measured by market capitalization. So why not rank corporations just on market value? All you have to do is go back to a year like 2000, when tiny startups, with little in the way of sales, assets, employees or even a viable business, were suddenly valued as if they were blue chip corporations.
An asset-ranked list has an obvious shortcoming: Financial service companies would dominate. And a list ordered solely on corporate profits would completely miss big cyclical companies like General Motors and Ford Motor during downturns.
For all the above reasons, we developed our composite ranking system for selecting and ordering the Forbes Global 2000. Using our methodology, Chevron ($185 billion in revenues, $14 billion in profits, $125 billion in assets and $127 billion in market) ranks 16. Chevron's ranks on the four underlying metrics range from a high of 6 on sales to a low of 122 on assets.
Well-known global companies like Chevron, Exxon Mobil and Toyota Motor head the Forbes Global 2000, but as you drill down into the rankings, you will find companies that are not household names in America. Today, one cannot purchase many of those companies as American Depositary Receipts, a type of security that makes it easy for U.S. investors to hold stakes in foreign companies. That is likely to change as these companies gain in stature and recognition. If you want to find companies that might become the international leaders of tomorrow, the Forbes Global 2000 is an excellent prospecting list.
Last year, for example, we ranked Xstrata No. 764 on the Forbes Global 2000; this year it climbed to 510. Based in Switzerland, this coal and metals-mining company saw double-digit gains in all four metrics, highlighted by a 38% increase in market value. Someday a company like Xstrata, which trades in Switzerland and London, might be available as an ADR.
With combined sales of $24 trillion; profits, $1.7 billion; assets $88 trillion; market value $31 trillion; and worldwide employees 68 million, the Forbes Global 2000 accounts for a significant chunk of the global economy. This year's rankings, which span 55 countries, show the gains of emerging economic dynamos such as China and India. We now include 36 companies based in Hong Kong/China, a gain of eight over the previous list; 28 in mainland China, up three; and 33 in India, up three.
With a 24% jump in 2005 revenues, Exxon Mobil moved past last year's world revenues champ, Wal-Mart Stores. Of the sales leaders, 20 hail from the U.S.
Tops In Profits
Higher oil and gas prices helped energy companies grab six of the top ten spots here. Exxon Mobil's record profits last year: $36 billion.
Tops In Assets
Financial service companies rule this list. Barclays of the U.K. unseats perennial asset leader Citigroup to claim the top spot in assets.
Tops In Market Value
Despite an 11% decline in market value from last year, Exxon Mobil, capitalized at $363 billion, remains the world's most valuable company.
From Top To Bottom
Of the Forbes Global 2000 companies, the banking sector is the biggest group by number, with 310 companies, and by workforce, with 6 million people worldwide. For the second consecutive year, the oil and gas group ranks first in aggregate revenues.
2006-06-16 14:38:47
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answer #1
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answered by torreyc73 5
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All you have to do is enter "world's top 5000 compaies" in a Google search and you'll get this: http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=576401, among many others. If that's not specific enough, you can add more words to the search and get better hits.
2006-06-16 14:40:21
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answer #2
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answered by frankdalian 1
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Well, forbes.com is probably going to be your best place to look. In their magazine, they have a list of the top 2000 companies listed by trade, like telecommunications. Below is a link to forbes' top 2000 companies, I hope this answers your question.
2006-06-16 14:36:52
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answer #3
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answered by beatlesluvr80 2
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