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The Top 100 Companies of the World: The U.S. vs Everyone Else

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Top 100 Companies of the World vs US

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The Top 100 Companies of the World: U.S. vs Everyone

When it comes to breaking down the top 100 companies of the world, the United States still commands the largest slice of the pie.

Throughout the 20th century and before globalization reached its current peaks, American companies made the country an economic powerhouse and the source of a majority of global market value.

But even as countries like China have made headway with multi-billion dollar companies of their own, and the market’s most important sectors have shifted, the U.S. has managed to stay on top.

How do the top 100 companies of the world stack up? This visualization pulls from PwC’s annual ranking of the world’s largest companies, using market capitalization data from May 2021.

Where are the World’s Largest Companies Located?

The world’s top 100 companies account for a massive $31.7 trillion in market cap, but that wealth is not distributed evenly.

Between companies, there’s a wide range of market caps. For example, the difference between the world’s largest company (Apple) and the 100th largest (Anheuser-Busch) is $1.9 trillion.

And between countries, that divide becomes even more stark. Of the 16 countries with companies making the top 100 ranking, the U.S. accounts for 65% of the total market cap value.

Location# of CompaniesMarket Capitalization (May 2021)
🇺🇸 United States59$20.55T
🇨🇳 China14$4.19T
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia1$1.92T
🇨🇭 Switzerland3$0.82T
🇳🇱 Netherlands3$0.58T
🇯🇵 Japan3$0.56T
🇫🇷 France2$0.55T
🇩🇪 Germany3$0.46T
🇰🇷 South Korea1$0.43T
🇬🇧 United Kingdom3$0.43T
🇮🇳 India2$0.34T
🇮🇪 Ireland2$0.34T
🇦🇺 Australia1$0.16T
🇩🇰 Denmark1$0.16T
🇨🇦 Canada1$0.13T
🇧🇪 Belgium1$0.13T

Compared to the U.S., other once-prominent markets like Japan, France, and the UK have seen their share of the world’s top 100 companies falter over the years. In fact, all of Europe accounts for just $3.46 trillion or 11% of the total market cap value of the list.

A major reason for the U.S. dominance in market values is a shift in important industries and contributors. Of the world’s top 100 companies, 52% were based in either technology or consumer discretionary, and the current largest players like Apple, Alphabet, Tesla, and Walmart are all American-based.

The Top 100 Companies of the World: Competition From China

The biggest and most impressive competitor to the U.S. is China.

With 14 companies of its own in the world’s top 100, China accounted for $4.19 trillion or 13% of the top 100’s total market cap value. That includes two of the top 10 firms by market cap, Tencent and Alibaba.

CompanyCountrySectorMarket Cap (May 2021)
#1AppleUnited StatesTechnology$2,051B
#2Saudi AramcoSaudi ArabiaEnergy$1,920B
#3MicrosoftUnited StatesTechnology$1,778B
#4AmazonUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$1,558B
#5AlphabetUnited StatesTechnology$1,393B
#6FacebookUnited StatesTechnology$839B
#7TencentChinaTechnology$753B
#8TeslaUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$641B
#9AlibabaChinaConsumer Discretionary$615B
#10Berkshire HathwayUnited StatesFinancials$588B
#11TSMCChinaTechnology$534B
#12VisaUnited StatesIndustrials$468B
#13JPMorgan ChaseUnited StatesFinancials$465B
#14Johnson & JohnsonUnited StatesHealth Care$433B
#15Samsung ElectronicsSouth KoreaTechnology$431B
#16Kweichow MoutaiChinaConsumer Staples$385B
#17WalmartUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$383B
#18MastercardUnited StatesIndustrials$354B
#19UnitedHealth GroupUnited StatesHealth Care$352B
#20LVMH Moët HennessyFranceConsumer Discretionary$337B
#21Walt Disney CoUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$335B
#22Bank of AmericaUnited StatesFinancials$334B
#23Procter & GambleUnited StatesConsumer Staples$333B
#24NvidiaUnited StatesTechnology$331B
#25Home DepotUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$329B
#26Nestle SASwitzerlandConsumer Staples$322B
#27ICBCChinaFinancials$290B
#28Paypal HoldingsUnited StatesIndustrials$284B
#29Roche HoldingsSwitzerlandHealth Care$283B
#30Intel United StatesTechnology$261B
#31ASML Holding NVNetherlandsTechnology$255B
#32Toyota MotorJapanConsumer Discretionary$254B
#33ComcastUnited StatesTelecommunication$248B
#34Verizon CommunicationsUnited StatesTelecommunication$241B
#35Exxon MobilUnited StatesEnergy$236B
#36NetflixUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$231B
#37AdobeUnited StatesTechnology$228B
#38Coca-Cola Co United StatesConsumer Staples$227B
#39MeituanChinaTechnology$226B
#40Ping AnChinaFinancials$219B
#41Cisco SystemsUnited StatesTelecommunication$218B
#42AT&TUnited StatesFinancials$216B
#43L'OréalFranceConsumer Discretionary$215B
#44China Construction BankChinaFinancials$213B
#45Abbott LabsUnited StatesHealth Care$212B
#46Novartis AGSwitzerlandHealth Care$212B
#47NikeUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$209B
#48Oracle United StatesTechnology$202B
#49PfizerUnited StatesHealth Care$202B
#50ChevronUnited StatesOil & Gas$202B
#51China Merchants BankChinaFinancials$196B
#52PepsiCoUnited StatesConsumer Staples$195B
#53Salesforce.comUnited StatesTechnology$195B
#54Merck & CoUnited StatesHealth Care$195B
#55AbbVieUnited StatesHealth Care$191B
#56BroadcomUnited StatesTechnology$189B
#57Prosus NVNetherlandsTechnology$181B
#58Reliance IndustriesIndiaEnergy$180B
#59Thermo Fisher ScientificUnited StatesHealth Care$180B
#60Eli Lilly & CoUnited StatesHealth Care$179B
#61Agricultural Bank of ChinaChinaFinancials$178B
#62Softbank GroupJapanTelecommunication$176B
#63Accenture IrelandIndustrials$176B
#64Texas InstrumentsUnited StatesTechnology$174B
#65McDonaldsUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$167B
#66Volkswagen AGGermanyConsumer Discretionary$165B
#67BHP GroupAustraliaBasic Materials$163B
#68Wells Fargo & CoUnited StatesFinancials$162B
#69Tata Consultancy ServicesIndiaTechnology$161B
#70DanaherUnited StatesHealth Care$160B
#71Novo NordiskDenmarkHealth Care$160B
#72Medtronic IrelandHealth Care$159B
#73Wuliangye YibinChinaConsumer Staples$159B
#74Costco WholesaleUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$156B
#75T-Mobile USUnited StatesTelecommunication$156B
#76CitigroupUnited StatesFinancials$152B
#77HoneywellUnited StatesIndustrials$151B
#78QualcommUnited StatesTechnology$151B
#79SAP SEGermanyTechnology$151B
#80BoeingUnited StatesIndustrials$149B
#81Royal Dutch Shell NetherlandsOil & Gas$148B
#82NextEra EnergyUnited StatesUtilities$148B
#83United Parcel ServiceUnited StatesIndustrials$148B
#84Union PACUnited StatesIndustrials$148B
#85Unilever United KingdomConsumer Staples$147B
#86AIA ChinaFinancials$147B
#87LindeUnited KingdomBasic Materials$146B
#88AmgenUnited StatesHealth Care$144B
#89Bristol Myers SquibbUnited StatesHealth Care$141B
#90Siemens AGGermanyIndustrials$140B
#91Bank of ChinaChinaFinancials$139B
#92Philip MorrisUnited StatesConsumer Staples$138B
#93Lowe's CompaniesUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$136B
#94Charter CommunicationsUnited StatesTelecommunication$135B
#95China MobileChinaTelecommunication$134B
#96Sony GroupJapanConsumer Discretionary$132B
#97AstrazenecaUnited KingdomHealth Care$131B
#98Royal Bank of CanadaCanadaFinancials$131B
#99StarbucksUnited StatesConsumer Discretionary$129B
#100Anheuser-BuschBelgiumConsumer Staples$128B

Impressively, China’s rise in market value isn’t limited to well-known tech and consumer companies. The country’s second biggest contributing industry to the top 100 firms was finance, once also the most valuable sector in the U.S. (currently 4th behind tech, consumer discretionary, and health care).

Other notable countries on the list include Saudi Arabia and its state-owned oil and gas giant Saudi Aramco, which is the third largest company in the world. Despite only having one company in the top 100, Saudi Arabia had the third-largest share of the top 100’s total market cap value.

As Europe continues to lose ground year-over-year and the rest of Asia struggles to keep up, the top 100 companies might become increasingly concentrated in just the U.S. and China. The question is, will the imbalance of global market value start to even out, or become even bigger?

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Markets

How Disinflation Could Affect Company Financing

History signals that after a period of slowing inflation—also known as disinflation—debt and equity issuance expands.
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17 hours ago

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May 29, 2023

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Chart showing U.S. Equity Issuance Deal Value from 1980-2000. Equity Issuance goes up over time, with the 300% increase in 1983 highlighted at the end of the disinflation period.
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The following content is sponsored by Citizens Commercial Banking

How Disinflation Could Affect Company Financing

The macroeconomic environment is shifting. Since the second half of 2022, the pace of U.S. inflation has been dropping.

We explore how this disinflation may affect company financing in Part 2 of our Understanding Market Trends series from Citizens.

Disinflation vs. Deflation

The last time inflation climbed above 9% and then dropped was in the early 1980’s.

Time PeriodMarch 1980-July 1983June 2022-April 2023*
Inflation at Start of Cycle14.8%9.1%
Inflation at End of Cycle2.5%4.9%

* The June 2022-April 2023 cycle is ongoing. Source: Federal Reserve. Inflation is based on the Consumer Price Index.

A decrease in the rate of inflation is known as disinflation. It differs from deflation, which is a negative inflation rate like the U.S. experienced at the end of the Global Financial Crisis in 2009.

How might slowing inflation affect the amount of debt and equity available to companies?

Looking to History

There are many factors that influence capital markets, such as technological advances, monetary policy, and regulatory changes.

With this caveat in mind, history signals that both debt and equity issuance expand after a period of disinflation.

Equity Issuance

Companies issued low levels of stock during the ‘80s disinflation period, but issuance later rose nearly 300% in 1983.

YearDeal Value
1980$2.6B
1981$5.0B
1982$3.6B
1983$13.5B
1984$2.5B
1985$12.0B
1986$24.2B
1987$24.9B
1988$16.9B
1989$12.9B
1990$13.4B
1991$45.2B
1992$50.3B
1993$95.3B
1994$63.7B
1995$79.7B
1996$108.7B
1997$106.5B
1998$97.0B
1999$142.8B
2000$156.5B

Source: Bloomberg. U.S. public equity issuance dollar volume that includes both initial and follow-on offerings and excludes convertibles.

Issuance grew quickly in the years that followed. Other factors also influenced issuance, such as the macroeconomic expansion, productivity growth, and the dotcom boom of the ‘90s.

Debt Issuance

Similarly, companies issued low debt during the ‘80s disinflation, but levels began to increase substantially in later years.

YearDeal Value Interest Rate
1980$4.5B11.4%
1981$6.7B13.9%
1982$14.5B13.0%
1983$8.1B11.1%
1984$25.7B12.5%
1985$46.4B10.6%
1986$47.1B7.7%
1987$26.4B8.4%
1988$24.7B8.9%
1989$29.9B8.5%
1990$40.2B8.6%
1991$41.6B7.9%
1992$50.0B7.0%
1993$487.8B5.9%
1994$526.4B7.1%
1995$632.7B6.6%
1996$906.0B6.4%
1997$1.3T6.4%
1998$1.8T5.3%
1999$1.8T5.7%
2000$2.8T6.0%

Source: Dealogic, Federal Reserve. Data reflects U.S. debt issuance dollar volume across several deal types including: Asset Backed Securities, U.S. Agency, Non-U.S. Agency, High Yield, Investment Grade, Government Backed, Mortgage Backed, Medium Term Notes, Covered Bonds, Preferreds, and Supranational. Interest Rate is the 10 Year Treasury Yield.

As interest rates dropped and debt capital markets matured, issuing debt became cheaper and corporations seized this opportunity.

It’s worth noting that debt issuance was also impacted by other factors, like the maturity of the high-yield debt market and growth in non-bank lenders such as hedge funds and pension funds.

Then vs. Now

Could the U.S. see levels of capital financing similar to what happened during the ‘80s disinflation? There are many economic differences between then and now.

Consider how various indicators differed 10 months into each disinflationary period.

January 1981April 2023*
Inflation Rate
Annual		11.8%4.9%
Inflation Expectations
Next 12 Months		9.5%4.5%
Interest Rate
10-Yr Treasury Yield		12.6%3.7%
Unemployment Rate
Seasonally Adjusted		7.5%3.4%
Nominal Wage Growth
Annual, Seasonally Adjusted		9.3%5.0%
After-Tax Corporate Profits
As Share of Gross Value Added		9.1%13.8%

* Data for inflation expectations and interest rate is as of May 2023, data for corporate profits is as of Q4 1980 and Q1 2023. Inflation is a year-over-year inflation rate based on the Consumer Price Index. Source: Federal Reserve.

The U.S. economy is in a better position when it comes to factors like inflation, unemployment, and corporate profits. On the other hand, fears of an upcoming recession and turmoil in the banking sector have led to volatility.

What to Consider During Disinflation

Amid uncertainty in financial markets, lenders and investors may be more cautious. Companies will need to be strategic about how they approach capital financing.

  • High-quality, profitable companies could be well positioned for IPOs as investors are placing more focus on cash flow.
  • High-growth companies could face fewer options as lenders become more selective and could consider alternative forms of equity and private debt.
  • Companies with lower credit ratings could find debt more expensive as lenders charge higher rates to account for market volatility.

In uncertain times, it’s critical for businesses to work with the right advisor to find—and take advantage of—financing opportunities.

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