Global 500

For the past 14 years the Global 500 has been the premier list of the world’s largest companies; 2008 is no exception. Altogether the giants grew a phenomenal 13%, to $23.6 trillion. To make the list, companies must earn a record $16.7 billion in revenues, up 12% from last year. A falling dollar became an advantage to non-U.S. firms by boosting their revenues and profits when currency conversion came into play. Consequently the list shows the fewest U.S. businesses (153) in more than a decade and confirms the rising prominence of the emerging markets. Less than ten years ago India, Mexico, and Russia posted only one company on the Global 500. This year’s list includes seven from the subcontinent and five firms each from Mexico and Russia.

Brazil, Russia, and India all came up winners, thanks to the inflow of cash from pumping oil and mining metals. Not only did returning companies from those countries claim higher spots (Rosneft Oil jumped 120 places, to No. 203), but they’re debuting with a bang. Take India’s Tata Steel (No. 315), which enters the roster with $25.7 billion in sales and earns the distinction of having the largest revenue increase on the list—a staggering 353%—after it acquired Anglo-Dutch Corus.

But this year China is stealing the show. Joining petrochemical giant Sinopec—China’s highest-ranking company this year at No. 16—are five new arrivals, including Lenovo (No. 499) and commodities trader Noble Group (No. 349). With an unprecedented total of 29 companies on the list, China posted as many companies as Italy, Spain, and Australia combined.

And the world's biggest companies are...

1. Wal-Mart Stores

Rank: 1 (Previous rank: 1)
CEO: H. Lee Scott Jr.
Employees: 2,055,000
Address: 702 S.W. Eighth St.
Bentonville, Arkansas  72716
Country: U.S.
Website: www.walmartstores.com

Retaining its spot as the largest company in the world, the retail giant spent the last year making strides toward becoming friendlier to its workers and the environment. Long derided for the limited health-care packages offered to its employees, the company focused on expanding its options. As of January, 93.7% of Wal-Mart’s U.S. employees had some form of health care, up from 90.4% last year.

On the sustainability front, the retailer sold 145 million energy-efficient light bulbs in 15 months and joined forces with the Clinton Climate Initiative. Some say it isn’t enough; a union-backed ad campaign by WakeUpWalMart.com at the end of 2007 targeted the quality of the company’s imported products.

Still far from pleasing all its critics, Wal-Mart did please its shoppers: Its renewed focus on lower prices delivered a stellar second half, bolstering total revenue for the year to $379 billion.

2. Exxon Mobil

Rank: 2 (Previous rank: 2)
CEO: Rex W. Tillerson
Employees: 107,100
Address: 5959 Las Colinas Blvd.
Irving, Texas  75039
Country: U.S.
Website: www.exxonmobil.com

Big companies know how to make big deals, and at the end of last March, Exxon Mobil signed onto a $5 billion project with Saudi Aramco and Sinopec to expand an existing venture in the Fujian province - marking the first fully integrated petrochemical plant in China backed by foreign investment.

Exxon had its best year ever in terms of safety results, while the competition didn’t fare as well. But the high cost of refining hurt Exxon just as much as it hurt the rest. Even with a record of $40.6 billion in net income, profits were up only 2.8% from the previous year.

3. Royal Dutch Shell

Rank: 3 (Previous rank: 3)
CEO: Jeroen van der Veer
Employees: 104,000
Address: Carel van Bylandtlaan 30
The Hague  2596
Country: Netherlands
Website: www.shell.com

In the face of the current energy crisis, Royal Dutch Shell has made its own moves to ensure the company’s future. Two large projects included acquiring a 22% stake in Shell Canada - increasing its access to the vast oil sands in Alberta - and moving forward with Pearl GTL, a gas-to-liquids plant in Qatar.

But the year wasn’t without glitches. Shell saw its stake in one of its biggest projects - the Russian-based Sakhalin II - reduced to 27% from 55%, as the Russian government asserted control over the country's oil industry.

4. BP

Rank: 4 (Previous rank: 4)
CEO: Anthony B. Hayward
Employees: 97,600
Address: 1 St. James Sq.
London  SW1Y 4PD
Country: Britain
Website: www.bp.com

Another tumultuous year for the oil giant: BP was forced to clean up its Whiting, Ind., refinery after it was hit by the EPA with clean-air violations, faced multiple fires on its Alaskan oil fields, and had to deal with the departure of Chief Executive and Director John Browne.

Much of the U.K.-based company’s time was spent handling its U.S. operations, as it modernized Whiting and dealt with the repercussions of the 2005 blast in Texas City. Yet the American operations weren’t all bad news - a $2.4 billion investment in the San Juan basin and deepwater drilling projects in the Gulf could be helpful in the next few years, once BP’s messes are behind it.

5. Toyota Motor

Rank: 5 (Previous rank: 6)
CEO: Fujio Cho
Employees: 316,121
Address: 1 Toyota-cho
Toyota  471-8571
Country: Japan
Website: www.toyota.co.jp

Detroit's decline worked in Toyota's favor, as the leader in hybrid-electric vehicles pushed past its American rivals on this year's list. Overall, Toyota sold only 3,000 fewer vehicles than global leader General Motors.

But the Japanese company gained on its rival in the United States: GM's sales fell 6% on its home turf, while Toyota's sales rose 3.1%.

6. Chevron

Rank: 6 (Previous rank: 7)
CEO: David J. O'Reilly
Employees: 65,035
Address: 6001 Bollinger Canyon Rd.
San Ramon, California  94583
Country: U.S.
Website: www.chevron.com

A leader when it comes to offshore drilling, the California-based company is relying on a number of projects - including Tahiti, which stalled production in 2007 - to alleviate demands at home and abroad.

In an effort to clean up its image, Chevron launched its largest-ever global advertising campaign, called “The Power of Human Energy,” to prove that it too is concerned with climate change. The company’s progress is promising. With a net income of $18.7 billion in 2007, it was the fourth consecutive year Chevron achieved record earnings.

7. ING Group

Rank: 7 (Previous rank: 13)
CEO: Michel Tilmant
Employees: 120,282
Address: Amstelveenseweg 500
Amsterdam  1081
Country: Netherlands
Website: www.ing.com

The only financial institution to make our top 10, ING was up 31% in profits from 2006. This was due in part to the company’s streamlining, as it sold many noncore businesses, and partly due to a focus on global branding, with mass advertising set around the sponsorship of a Formula One team.

ING continued to push into emerging markets, with primary investments in Thailand, Latin America, Turkey and South Korea. Although INGDirect.com provides just a small portion of the company’s profits, it added 3 million users in 2007, and now boasts over 20 million users worldwide.

8. Total

Rank: 8 (Previous rank: 10)
CEO: Christophe de Margerie
Employees: 96,442
Address: 2 Pl. de la Coupole
Courbevoie  92400
Country: France
Website: www.total.com

It was a good year for the oil and gas company, as newly launched operations in Africa helped push up net production by 5%, which Total translated into a 22.2% increase in profits.

But the year wasn’t without scandal for the French company, as new CEO Christophe de Margerie was placed under investigation in early 2007 for allegedly paying bribes to win the 1997 Iran South Pars project. The company insists that the agreement was lawful, and Margerie remains chief executive.

9. General Motors

Rank: 9 (Previous rank: 5)
CEO: G. Richard Wagoner Jr.
Employees: 266,000
Address: 300 Renaissance Center
Detroit, Michigan  48265
Country: U.S.
Website: www.gm.com

It was a tough year for GM, as it suffered a loss of nearly $39 billion and continues to lose market share to Japanese rivals Toyota and Honda.

But, with a diverse portfolio of brands, General Motors did hit some international milestones; combined with its local partners, it was the first automaker to sell 1 million vehicles in China, and sales increased 74% in India. Even with its commitment to emerging markets, though, the company spent much of 2007 handling labor issues back home.

10. ConocoPhillips

Rank: 10 (Previous rank: 9)
CEO: James J. Mulva
Employees: 32,600
Address: 600 N. Dairy Ashford Rd.
Houston, Texas  77079
Country: U.S.
Website: www.conocophillips.com

Dropping one spot on our list, ConocoPhillips saw a steep 23.5% decline in profits. The Texas-based company spent some $5.4 billion to reduce debt - incurred after the Burlington Resources acquisition in 2006 - and took a $4.5 billion hit due to Venezuela’s expropriation of Conoco’s assets.

ConocoPhillips did make advances in the energy field, however, by teaming up with Tyson Foods to further its work in the biofuels industry.