By David Dawkins
Oil and energy giant Royal Dutch Shell has regained the lead of Europe’s leading listed company, Forbes Global 2000, overtaking German carmaker Volkswagen AG again in second place.
The Anglo-Dutch giant, based in London, is valued at $ 211 billion this year, a value that has increased by almost 40% compared to last year and more than doubled the second Volkswagen AG.
In May, Shell announced a record profit for the first quarter of 2022, at $ 9.13 billion, thanks to the explosive rise in oil prices, which was further strengthened after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February and the imposition of sanctions by West at the expense of Moscow. The company also returned to 16th place in the global ranking of the 2,000 largest listed companies this year, from 324th place where it had fallen last year.
In second place in the European rankings was the well-known German car giant Volkswagen, which “signs” some of the most famous cars on the roads of the planet – such as Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini and Bentley -, which saw its capitalization Volkswagen, like other automakers, has cut production in part because of the severe shortages of semiconductors worldwide and the continuing impact on the diesel gate. of the diesel vehicle emissions scandal, which led to its share falling more than 30% in the period since last year’s list was published.
Next is the French Total SA. The other European oil and gas giant benefited greatly from the same factors that contributed to Shell’s “return”, rising from 344th in the world rankings last year to jumping to 29th this year. supplement the German insurance giant Allianz and HSBC, the largest bank in Britain.
Since 2003, Forbes’ Global 2000 list of the largest listed companies in the world has taken into account four balanced parameters: their assets, their capitalization, their sales and their profits. This year the list was compiled based on the data of FactSet Research, while the calculation of the capitalizations was made based on the closing prices of the shares on April 22, 2022. All the data are also expressed in US dollars.
In terms of business size and geography, the three “superpowers” of Europe are the United Kingdom with 57 companies, France with 54 and Germany with 52 companies.
In contrast, last year, when the classification was largely determined by the coronavirus pandemic and the changes it brought to the business environment, this year, the rise in energy prices played a catalytic role as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
But while Russia’s billionaires have lost much of their wealth to the war, Russian oil and gas groups have been able to better cope with the sanctions storm.
The Russian giant Gazprom, in fact, climbed more than 300 places higher and returned to the top 50 of the world rankings, occupying the 49th place. Rosneft also remained in the top 100, while LukOil was added to the list, which also climbed more than 300 places higher.
However, the leading oil giant in the world list of retained Saudi Arabia, the state oil giant, Saudi Aramco, which now ranks third in the world, with a market value of 2 trillion. dollars.
The top 10 listed in Europe
No. 1 Shell Plc
Country: Netherlands
Sales: $ 261 billion
Capitalization: $ 211 billion
No. 2 Volkswagen AG
Country: Germany
Sales: $ 295 billion
Capitalization: $ 82 billion
No. 3 Total SA
Country: France
Sales: $ 185 billion
Capitalization: $ 127 billion
No. 4 Allianz
Country: Germany
Sales: $ 138 billion
Capitalization: $ 96 billion
No. 5 HSBC Holdings plc
Country: United Kingdom
Sales: $ 59 billion
Capitalization: $ 135 billion
No. 6 BNP Paribas SA (Class A)
Country: France
Sales: $ 127 billion
Capitalization: $ 68 billion
No. 7 Mercedes-Benz Group AG
Country: Germany
Sales: $ 178 billion
Capitalization: $ 74 billion
No. 8 Nestle SA
Country: Switzerland
Sales: $ 95 billion
Capitalization: $ 360 billion
No. 9 AXA SA
Country: France
Sales: $ 145 billion
Capitalization: $ 65 billion
No. 10 Gazprom (PJSC)
Country: Russia
Sales: $ 117 billion
Capitalization: $ 63 billion
Source: Capital
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
