Transnational corporations are listed among the main entities on the international stage, next to
the traditional key players such as states. Through the international
transfer of capital, highly skilled labor, technology, and intermediate and final
products multinational enterprises are the most important driver of
globalization.1
There is a lot of studies about positive and negative role of
transnational corporation in a global economy and modern world. I will not
touch this sphere and focus on showing briefly power and size of corporations.
The best way to present their size and potential are figures.
According the UNCTAD statistics at the end of 2009 there were about 82 000
Transnational Corporations (parent) with some 800 000 affiliates abroad.
Foreign affiliates accounted for an estimated 11 per cent of world GDP, with total
sales at $29 trillion and total assets of $77 trillion. The number of employees
in foreign affiliates was estimated to 80 million workers.2
|
Rank
|
Company
|
Country
|
Sales
|
Profits
|
Assets
|
Market Value
|
|
1
|
Exxon Mobil
|
United States
|
433,5
|
41,1
|
331,1
|
407,4
|
|
2
|
JPMorgan Chase
|
United States
|
110,8
|
19
|
2 265,8
|
170,1
|
|
3
|
General Electric
|
United States
|
147,3
|
14,2
|
717,2
|
213,7
|
|
4
|
Royal Dutch Shell
|
Netherlands
|
470,2
|
30,9
|
340,5
|
227,6
|
|
5
|
ICBC
|
China
|
82,6
|
25,1
|
2
039,1
|
237,4
|
|
6
|
HSBC Holdings
|
United Kingdom
|
102
|
16,2
|
2
550
|
164,3
|
|
7
|
PetroChina
|
China
|
310,1
|
20,6
|
304,7
|
294,7
|
|
8
|
Berkshire Hathaway
|
United States
|
143,7
|
10,3
|
392,6
|
202,2
|
|
9
|
Wells Fargo
|
United States
|
87,6
|
15,9
|
1
313,9
|
178,7
|
|
10
|
Petrobras-Petróleo
Brasil
|
Brazil
|
145,9
|
20,1
|
319,4
|
180
|
The definition presented by UNCTAD Transnational
Corporations are incorporated or unincorporated enterprises comprising parent
enterprises and their foreign affiliates. A parent enterprise is defined as an
enterprise that controls assets of other entities in countries other than its
home country, usually by owning a certain equity capital stake.
A foreign affiliate is an incorporated or
unincorporated enterprise in which an investor, who is resident in another
economy, owns a stake that permits a lasting interest in the management of that
enterprise (an equity stake of 10 per cent for an incorporated enterprise or
its equivalent for an unincorporated enterprise).3
The largest TNCs are more powerful and poses more
assets than many low and medium income states. Despite Gross Domestic Product
and revenues of companies are not fully comparable values, they are similar
categories. The table below presents comparison
of the GDP of selected countries in 2011 with the world’s 10 largest companies
(in terms of revenues).
|
Country/Company
|
GDP/Revenues
$ billions
|
|
Norway
|
484
|
|
Royal Dutch Shell
|
470
|
|
Taiwan Province of China
|
467
|
|
Argentina
|
448
|
|
Wal-Mart Stores
|
447
|
|
Exxon Mobil
|
434
|
|
Austria
|
419
|
|
South Africa
|
408
|
|
Sinopec-China Petroleum
|
391
|
|
BP
|
376
|
|
United Arab Emirates
|
360
|
|
PetroChina
|
310
|
|
Greece
|
303
|
|
Hong Kong SAR
|
243
|
|
Chevron
|
236
|
|
Egypt
|
236
|
|
ConocoPhillips
|
231
|
|
Toyota Motor
|
229
|
|
Volkswagen Group
|
222
|
|
Ireland
|
218
|
Authors of GLOBAL 2000
divided companies from the list into regions:
- Asia-Pacific - 733 total members,
- Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) – 605 total members,
- U.S. – 524 total members,
- the Americas – 145 total members.
|
Country
|
GDP Rank
|
Global 100
|
Global 2000
|
|
United
States
|
1
|
31
|
524
|
|
China
|
2
|
8
|
136
|
|
Japan
|
3
|
8
|
258
|
|
Germany
|
4
|
7
|
53
|
|
France
|
5
|
7
|
63
|
|
United
Kingdom
|
6
|
5
|
90
|
|
Brazil
|
7
|
5
|
33
|
|
Italy
|
8
|
2
|
34
|
|
Canada
|
9
|
3
|
66
|
|
India
|
10
|
-
|
61
|
|
Russia
|
11
|
4
|
28
|
|
Spain
|
12
|
3
|
28
|
|
Australia
|
13
|
5
|
44
|
|
Mexico
|
14
|
-
|
16
|
|
South
Korea
|
15
|
2
|
68
|
|
Netherlands
|
16
|
2
|
24
|
|
Turkey
|
17
|
-
|
11
|
|
Indonesia
|
18
|
-
|
10
|
|
Switzerland
|
19
|
5
|
45
|
|
Poland
|
20
|
-
|
7
|
GLOBAL 2000:
- Ranking
- Methodology
.
References:
1. OECD, Measuring Globalisation: OECD Economic Globalisation Indicators 2010, Paris 2010, p. 9.
2. UNCTAD, World Investment Report 2010, New York and Geneva 2010, p. 16-17.
3. http://unctad.org/en/Pages/DIAE/Transnational-corporations-(TNC).aspx
, 26.04.2012.
