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Introducing Fortune’s first-ever Southeast Asia 500: Firms that mine stuff, make stuff, and move stuff dominate a fast-growing region
By Clay Chandler | Fortune Magazine | June 18, 2024
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The inaugural Fortune Southeast Asia 500 list, Fortune’s first-ever ranking of the largest companies in this part of the world, reflects a dynamic and fast-changing region—one that boasts a GDP of $4 trillion, and one whose core economies are growing notably faster than those of Europe or the U.S.
Southeast Asia is also taking on far greater significance in the global economy. In the wake of the COVID pandemic, a host of Global 500 multinationals have shifted more of their supply chains to Southeast Asian nations. Foreign direct investment to the region is soaring. And with a young and growing population of 680 million, low inflation, and stable exchange rates, Southeast Asia is emerging as an attractive market in its own right.
A defining feature of the Southeast Asia 500 is its domination by a handful of giant firms with far-flung global operations. Only five companies on the Southeast Asia 500 were large enough to have made the 2023 edition of the Fortune Global 500, for which the revenue threshold was $30.9 billion. By comparison, that list included 119 companies from Europe, 136 from the U.S., and 142 from China including Hong Kong and Taiwan.
In compiling the Southeast Asia 500, Fortune surveyed companies in the region’s six core economies plus Cambodia. Indonesia, with a population of 280 million and a GDP of $1.5 trillion, claimed the largest number of companies on the list, with 110. Thailand, with 70 million people and a $550 billion economy, came in a close second with 107. Singapore, with only 5.6 million people, punches way above its weight on the Southeast Asia 500, fielding 84 companies. Vietnam, one of the region’s fastest-growing economies, was home to 70 companies on the list.
A historically minded reader can find parallels between this list and the inaugural U.S. Fortune 500, from 1955. As with Southeast Asia’s rankings today, the top echelons of the first U.S. list were dominated by producers of major commodities: Four of the top 10 in 1955 were oil producers, for example, and two were steelmakers.
3 key takeaways from the article
- The inaugural Fortune Southeast Asia 500 list, Fortune’s first-ever ranking of the largest companies in this part of the world, reflects a dynamic and fast-changing region—one that boasts a GDP of $4 trillion, and one whose core economies are growing notably faster than those of Europe or the U.S.
- Southeast Asia is also taking on far greater significance in the global economy. In the wake of the COVID pandemic, a host of Global 500 multinationals have shifted more of their supply chains to Southeast Asian nations. Foreign direct investment to the region is soaring. And with a young and growing population of 680 million, low inflation, and stable exchange rates, Southeast Asia is emerging as an attractive market in its own right.
- A defining feature of the Southeast Asia 500 is its domination by a handful of giant firms with far-flung global operations. Indonesia claimed the largest number of companies on the list with 110. Thailand came in a close second with 107. Singapore fielded 84 companies. And Vietnam was home to 70 companies on the list.
(Copyright lies with the publisher)
Topics: Southeast Asian Economies, Global Economy, Globalization
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