The Financial Times, UK released the latest list of the Top 500 Global Companies for 2009. In the midst of financial crisis, the total market capitalization of the Global 500 companies has fallen sharply by 42% from $26.8 trillion to $15.6 trillion.

Energy companies overtake banks as the most valuable sector, with Exxon Mobil ranking the first and China National Petroleum the second.

Banks lose more than half of their value. Chinese Banks remain unaffected.

According to UK media, several European and American financial services companies (Banks and insurance, etc) leave the list, including American International Group (AIG), Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers. The market value of the banks has more than halved from $4.1 trillion (about 28 trillion yuan) in 2008 to $1.9 trillion (about 12.9 trillion yuan) in 2009.

But Chinese banks are not influenced. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China climbs from the 6th to the 4th, continuing to be the one with the highest market capitalization among all the listed banks in the world.

The United States ranks the top, followed by China

The United States ranks the top with 181 companies on the list and a total market capitalization of $6.2 trillion. China follows with 47 companies (including 16 Hong Kong companies and 4 Taiwan companies) on the list with a total market capitalization of $1.9 trillion.

Although Japan has 49 companies on the list and UK has 32 companies on the list, their total market capitalizations are lower than that of China.

The list is made based on the share price of companies with the proportion of shares in market circulation at least 15%. The country or region where a company belongs to is determined by where the company went public. Therefore, China Mobile is listed as a Hong Kong company.

The rank of the top 10 global companies (previous year) Company Country/Region Industry Market Capitalization (Yuan)

1(1) Exxon Mobil, US, Energy, 2.29 trillion Yuan
2(2) China National Petroleum, China-Mainland, Energy, 1.96 trillion Yuan
3(11) Wal-Mart Stores, US, Retail, 1.39 trillion, 1.39 trillion Yuan
4(6) Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China-Mainland, Bank, 1.28 trillion Yuan
5(5) China Mobile, Hong Kong, China, Telecommunication, 1.19 trillion Yuan
6(7) Microsoft, US, Computer and software, 1.11 trillion Yuan
7(8) AT&T, US, Telephone, 1.01 trillion Yuan
8(17) Johnson & Johnson, US, Medicine 0.994 trillion Yuan
9(9) Shell, UK, Energy, 0.949 trillion Yuan
10(10) P&G, US, Daily commodities, 0.942 trillion Yuan

27 Companies from the Chinese mainland
Ranking (previous year) Company

2(2) China National Petroleum
4(6) Industrial and Commercial Bank of China
13(20) China Construction Bank
21(26) Bank of China
24(37) Sinopec
31(50) China Life Insurance
59(52) China Shenhua Energy
87(140) Ping An Insurance Company
94(105) Bank Of Communications
122(103) China Merchants Bank
174(369) CITIC Securities Company
190(260) China CITIC Bank
243 Zijin Mining
269(422) Shanghai Pudong Development Bank
289 China Railway Constrution Corporation
292 Industrial Bank
93(273) Aluminum Corporation of China
309(433) China Railway Group
314(363) Kweichow Moutai Corporation
337(242) China COSCO
340(288) Shanghai Bao Steel Corporation
343(311) China Coal Energy
350(419) China Minsheng Banking
383(387) China Vanke
405 Huaneng Power International
427 Shanghai Electric Group Company
472 Datang International Power Generation Corporation