India has 56 of world’s 2,000 mightiest firms

New York: India is home to 56 of the world’s 2000 largest and most powerful public companies, according to the Forbes annual list which is topped by the US with its share of 579 companies.

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries leads the pack of 56 Indian companies in the 2015 Forbes ‘Global 2000’ list. The list gives a snapshot of the world’s largest companies, and shows the dominance of the US and China in the current global business landscape.

The two countries split the top 10 spots for a second year in a row. Forbes said that for the first time, China’s four biggest banks own the top four spots and the South Asian giant is home to 232 of the world’s largest companies, adding more spots than any other country in the world and surpassing Japan for the first time.

With 218 companies, Japan slid to the third spot. India has added two companies to its last year’s tally.

Reliance Industries, with a market value of 42.9 billion dollars and 71.7 billion dollars in sales, is ranked 142 on the list, down from last year’s 135th spot.

Reliance is followed by State Bank of India which is ranked 152 and has a 33 billion dollars market value. The other Indian companies on the list are Oil and Natural Gas ranked 183, Tata Motors (263), ICICI Bank (283), Indian Oil (349), HDFC Bank (376), NTPC (431), TCS (485), Bharti Airtel (506), Axis Bank (558), Infosys (672), Bharat Petroleum (757), Wipro (811), Tata Steel (903) and Adani Enterprises (944). This year’s Global 2000 companies hail from 61 countries and account for combined revenues of $39 trillion, profits of $3 trillion, with assets worth $162 trillion, and a market value of $48 trillion. The total market value of Global 2000 companies, owing to a bull market, grew 9 per cent year-over-year, Forbes said.

Newcomers like travel company Expedia and luxury jewelry retailer Tiffany also found a place in the coveted list.