One of the key concepts many CEOs are chewing on this time of the financial crunch is pushing forward despite the generally dismal outlook. Steve Ballmer probably said it best, saying “”Despite the economy, it’s important to think about what is possible.” Ironic as it may, it echoes the same challenge Google chief Erich Schmidt issued to the ailing newspaper industry – to push forward in create new products to generate business.
Here we have one of Forbes‘ 25 biggest companies in the world today.
Forbes’ ranking of the world’s biggest companies departs from lopsided lists based on a single metric, like sales. Instead, we use an equal weighting of sales, profits, assets and market value to rank companies according to size. This year’s list reveals the dynamism of global business. The rankings span 62 countries, with the U.S. still dominant at 551 members, but that is 200 fewer than in 2004, when we first published this global list.
Check out the top 25 of their Global 2000 after the cut.
1. General Electric
2. Royal Dutch Shell
3T. Toyota Motor
3T. Exxon Mobil
5. BP
6. HSBC Holdings
7. AT&T
8. Wal-Mart Stores
9T. Banco Santander
9T. Chevron
11. Total
12. ICBC
13. Gazprom
14. Petrochina
15. Volkswagen
16. JPMorgan Chase
17. GDF Suez
18. ENI
19. Berkshire Hathaway
20. Vodafone
21. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial
22. Procter & Gamble
23. CCB-China Construction Bank
24. Verizon Communications
25. Petrobas
