Markets
The World’s Largest 50 Companies by Revenue
Billions of dollars, 2016
World’s Largest 50 Companies by Revenue in 2016
Today’s data visualization comes from Datashown, and it compares the world’s largest companies by their 2016 revenues to really help put the size and scale of these companies into perspective.
As just one example, despite being worth more than the majority of brick and mortar retailers combined, Amazon ranks just #44 in terms of global revenue to barely crack the list.
If Amazon is a “small fry”, then what kind of massive conglomerates populate the list?
Flying Under the Radar
While familiar global oil firms and massive banks make up a good portion of the companies on the list, there are also many companies in China and Europe that are less likely to ring a bell.
Here is a primer on some of the companies that clearly rank among the world’s largest, but fly a little under the radar – especially for North Americans:
Exor
Have you heard of Exor? It was the second-largest financial company in the world in 2016 with $153 billion in revenue. This Italian investment company owns chunks of The Economist Group, Fiat Chrysler, Ferrari, Juventus F.C. – just to name a few of its holdings.
Ping An Insurance
Ping An literally means “safe and well”, and the company is China’s second-largest insurer. The company is also well-known for being an early backer of Lufax, an online P2P lending platform, which is one of the biggest fintech unicorns out there.
E-ON
E-ON is a European conglomerate based in Essen, Germany. It’s one of the world’s largest investor-owned electric utility service providers, and serves 33 million customers in over 30 countries. The company is focused on energy networks, customer solutions, and renewables. It also owns nuclear power plants in Germany, but considers that a non-core part of its business. According to Fortune, the company brought in $129 billion in revenues in 2016.
AXA
AXA is a French multinational insurance firm with business in global insurance, investment management, and other financial services. It had $129 billion in revenues in 2016.
State Grid
The second-largest company in the world is a state-owned electric utility company in China. It has a whopping 1.9 million employees, 1.1 billion customers, and revenues of $330 billion.
Other State-Owned Enterprises in China
It’s hard to keep track of all the state-owned giants in China such as State Grid – but there are many others out there that also make the list of the top companies by revenue.
Those include massive enterprises like Sinopec, China National Petroleum, ICBC, China Construction Bank, Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, and China Construction Bank.
Markets
U.S. Debt Interest Payments Reach $1 Trillion
U.S. debt interest payments have surged past the $1 trillion dollar mark, amid high interest rates and an ever-expanding debt burden.
U.S. Debt Interest Payments Reach $1 Trillion
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
The cost of paying for America’s national debt crossed the $1 trillion dollar mark in 2023, driven by high interest rates and a record $34 trillion mountain of debt.
Over the last decade, U.S. debt interest payments have more than doubled amid vast government spending during the pandemic crisis. As debt payments continue to soar, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported that debt servicing costs surpassed defense spending for the first time ever this year.
This graphic shows the sharp rise in U.S. debt payments, based on data from the Federal Reserve.
A $1 Trillion Interest Bill, and Growing
Below, we show how U.S. debt interest payments have risen at a faster pace than at another time in modern history:
| Date | Interest Payments | U.S. National Debt |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $1.0T | $34.0T |
| 2022 | $830B | $31.4T |
| 2021 | $612B | $29.6T |
| 2020 | $518B | $27.7T |
| 2019 | $564B | $23.2T |
| 2018 | $571B | $22.0T |
| 2017 | $493B | $20.5T |
| 2016 | $460B | $20.0T |
| 2015 | $435B | $18.9T |
| 2014 | $442B | $18.1T |
| 2013 | $425B | $17.2T |
| 2012 | $417B | $16.4T |
| 2011 | $433B | $15.2T |
| 2010 | $400B | $14.0T |
| 2009 | $354B | $12.3T |
| 2008 | $380B | $10.7T |
| 2007 | $414B | $9.2T |
| 2006 | $387B | $8.7T |
| 2005 | $355B | $8.2T |
| 2004 | $318B | $7.6T |
| 2003 | $294B | $7.0T |
| 2002 | $298B | $6.4T |
| 2001 | $318B | $5.9T |
| 2000 | $353B | $5.7T |
| 1999 | $353B | $5.8T |
| 1998 | $360B | $5.6T |
| 1997 | $368B | $5.5T |
| 1996 | $362B | $5.3T |
| 1995 | $357B | $5.0T |
| 1994 | $334B | $4.8T |
| 1993 | $311B | $4.5T |
| 1992 | $306B | $4.2T |
| 1991 | $308B | $3.8T |
| 1990 | $298B | $3.4T |
| 1989 | $275B | $3.0T |
| 1988 | $254B | $2.7T |
| 1987 | $240B | $2.4T |
| 1986 | $225B | $2.2T |
| 1985 | $219B | $1.9T |
| 1984 | $205B | $1.7T |
| 1983 | $176B | $1.4T |
| 1982 | $157B | $1.2T |
| 1981 | $142B | $1.0T |
| 1980 | $113B | $930.2B |
| 1979 | $96B | $845.1B |
| 1978 | $84B | $789.2B |
| 1977 | $69B | $718.9B |
| 1976 | $61B | $653.5B |
| 1975 | $55B | $576.6B |
| 1974 | $50B | $492.7B |
| 1973 | $45B | $469.1B |
| 1972 | $39B | $448.5B |
| 1971 | $36B | $424.1B |
| 1970 | $35B | $389.2B |
| 1969 | $30B | $368.2B |
| 1968 | $25B | $358.0B |
| 1967 | $23B | $344.7B |
| 1966 | $21B | $329.3B |
Interest payments represent seasonally adjusted annual rate at the end of Q4.
At current rates, the U.S. national debt is growing by a remarkable $1 trillion about every 100 days, equal to roughly $3.6 trillion per year.
As the national debt has ballooned, debt payments even exceeded Medicaid outlays in 2023—one of the government’s largest expenditures. On average, the U.S. spent more than $2 billion per day on interest costs last year. Going further, the U.S. government is projected to spend a historic $12.4 trillion on interest payments over the next decade, averaging about $37,100 per American.
Exacerbating matters is that the U.S. is running a steep deficit, which stood at $1.1 trillion for the first six months of fiscal 2024. This has accelerated due to the 43% increase in debt servicing costs along with a $31 billion dollar increase in defense spending from a year earlier. Additionally, a $30 billion increase in funding for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in light of the regional banking crisis last year was a major contributor to the deficit increase.
Overall, the CBO forecasts that roughly 75% of the federal deficit’s increase will be due to interest costs by 2034.
-
Real Estate2 weeks agoVisualizing America’s Shortage of Affordable Homes
-
Technology1 week agoRanked: Semiconductor Companies by Industry Revenue Share
-
Money1 week agoWhich States Have the Highest Minimum Wage in America?
-
Real Estate1 week agoRanked: The Most Valuable Housing Markets in America
-
Business2 weeks agoCharted: Big Four Market Share by S&P 500 Audits
-
AI2 weeks agoThe Stock Performance of U.S. Chipmakers So Far in 2024
-
Misc2 weeks agoAlmost Every EV Stock is Down After Q1 2024
-
Money2 weeks agoWhere Does One U.S. Tax Dollar Go?