Filenews 13 May 2022
By David Dawkins
Oil and energy giant Royal Dutch Shell regained the lead of Europe's top listed company on the Forbes Global 2000 list, sidelining German automaker Volkswagen AG back in second place.
The London-based Anglo-Dutch giant is valued at $211 billion this year a value increased by almost 40% compared to last year and more than double the second Volkswagen AG.
In May, Shell announced record profitability for the first quarter of 2022, at $9.13 billion, thanks to the explosive rise in oil prices that strengthened even more after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February and the imposition of sanctions by the West against 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 slumped last year.
In second place in the European ranking was the well-known German car giant Volkswagen, who 'signs' some of the most famous cars on the world's roads - such as the Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini and Bentley - which has seen its market capitalisation fall by more than $60 billion in the last 12 months. Volkswagen, like other automakers, has cut its production in part due to the severe semiconductor shortages recorded worldwide and the ongoing impact it is suffering in the wake of the diesel-gate, the diesel-gate emissions scandal, which has led its stock to fall by more than 30% in the time since the publication of last year's list.
It is followed by the French Total SA. The other European oil and gas giant benefited greatly from the same factors that contributed to Shell's "comeback", resulting from 344th place in the world rankings where it was in last year to soar this year to 29th place. The top five in Europe are completed by German insurance giant Allianz and HSBC, Britain's largest bank.
Since 2003, Forbes' Global 2000 list highlights the largest listed companies on the planet by taking into account four balanced parameters: their assets, their capitalization, their sales and profits. This year's list was compiled based on data from FactSet Research, while the capitalizations were calculated based on the closing prices of the shares on April 22, 2022. All items are also expressed in US dollars.
In terms of business size and geography, Europe's three "superpowers" are the United Kingdom with 57 companies, France with 54 and Germany with 52 companies.
In contrast to last year, when the ranking was largely determined by the coronavirus pandemic and the changes it has brought about in the business environment, this year the rise in energy prices played a catalytic role as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
But although Russia's billionaires have lost a significant part of their wealth due to the war, Russian oil and gas groups have managed to better cope with the "storm" of sanctions.
Russian giant Gazprom, in fact, climbed more than 300 places higher and returned the top 50 of the world rankings, occupying 49th place. Rosneft also remained in the top 100, while LukOil was added to the list, which also climbed more than 300 places higher.
The first among the oil giants in the world ranking of listed companies, however, is maintained by the state oil giant of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco, which now ranks third in the world rankings, with a market capitalization of 2 trillion. Dollars.
The top 10 of Europe's listed companies
No. 1 Shell Plc - Country: Netherlands
Sales: €261 billion. Capitalisation: €211 billion
No. 2 Volkswagen AG - Country: Germany
Sales: €295 billion. Capitalisation: €82 billion
No. 3 Total SA - Country: France
Sales: €185 billion. Capitalisation: €127 billion
No. 4 Allianz - Country: Germany
Sales: €138 billion. Capitalisation: €96 billion
No. 5 HSBC Holdings plc - Country: United Kingdom
Sales: €59 billion. Capitalisation: €135 billion
No. 6 BNP Paribas SA (Class A) - Country: France
Sales: €127 billion. Capitalisation: €68 billion
No. 7 Mercedes-Benz Group AG - Country: Germany
Sales: €178 billion. Capitalisation: €74 billion
No. 8 Nestle S.A. - Country: Switzerland
Sales: €95 billion. Capitalisation: €360 billion
No. 9 AXA SA - Country: France
Sales: €145 billion. Capitalisation: €65 billion
No. 10 Gazprom (PJSC) - Country: Russia
Sales: €117 billion. Capitalisation: €63 billion
Source: Forbes
