Global Top 100 companies by market capitalisation reach new highs despite current macroeconomic pressures: PwC analysis

• The market capitalisation of the Global Top 100 companies increased by 11% in the year to March 2022, resulting in a record-breaking total market capitalisation of US$35.2 trillion
• Technology companies represented 34% of the Global Top 100, with a combined market capitalisation of US$12.0 trillion
• The US continues to capture the majority share of market capitalisation among the top 100, with 63 companies represented and a market cap of 70%

LONDON, 31 May 2022 – Despite volatility in the global economy, market capitalisation (market cap) for the Global Top 100 companies is continuing to set records, according to PwC’s latest analysis.

Although the growth rate for the Global Top 100 companies by market capitalisation was tempered compared to the prior year, the overall total market cap of these companies still grew by 11% to reach US$35.2 trillion compared to US$31.8 trillion as of March 2021.

At the industry level, twenty technology companies represent 34% of the Global Top 100 with a combined market cap of US$12.0 trillion. The value of healthcare companies in the Global Top 100 has also shown sustained growth since 2018, increasing by 84% ($1.9 trillion) between 2018 and 2022 and comprising an average of 16 companies throughout the same period. Although the market cap of financial services and energy companies in the Global Top 100 did not grow as fast as their industry-wide indices in 2022, their market cap increased by 7% and 30% respectively. Representation of financial services companies on the Global Top 100 has steadily decreased over the past five years from 22% in 2018 to 11% in 2022.

Stuart Newman, Global IPO Centre Leader, Partner, PwC UK, says: “The Top 100 continues to shine a light on the long term trends in the global economy and the key role of capital markets in supporting long term growth. Yes, there is current volatility in the economy but the longer term story remains clear that market capitalisation is still rising strongly for the Top 100, reflecting US$35tn of value at March 2022 compared to $13tn in 2012.”

US based companies carry the majority share of market cap while other regions continue to see differing trends

The US continues to increase its dominant representation in the Global Top 100, representing 63 companies in total and a market cap at 70% as of March 2022 - up 19% in the year to March 2022.

In comparison, the value of the Global Top 100 companies from China and its regions - representing 13 companies in total - decreased by 23% in 2022. This downward trend is a departure from previous years when changes in market capitalisation were broadly aligned with the US. This may indicate a future divergence in capital market growth as the Chinese markets deepen in liquidity and maturity.

Growth in the market capitalisation of European companies has also been muted over the past ten years, with just a 1% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) and 15 companies represented in the top 100. However, the four UK based companies in the top 100 notably experienced a US$477bn increase in market capitalisation from 2021 (on a like-for-like basis).

Companies in other regions represented in the top 100 such as Saudi Arabia (1), India (2), South Korea (1), Australia (2), Canada (2) and Japan (1) have seen compelling growth in value since 2017. The companies in these regions surpassed both Europe and China in 2022 with a combined total market capitalisation of US$4.0 trillion.                       

Ends.

Notes to the editors

1. The Global Top 100 report ranks the largest public companies by their market capitalisation in US dollars as at 31 March 2022, using Bloomberg Finance L.P. with PwC analysis as the data sources.
2. A company’s location is the country or region where its headquarters are located. China and its regions includes: Mainland China, Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan.The countries and territories classified under the Rest of the World (RoW) category include Australia, Canada, India, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea.
3. Sector classification is based on FTSE Russell Industry Classification Benchmark (ICB). In Q1 2021, the ICB framework was revised: The “Oil and gas” sector was renamed to “Energy”, the “Consumer Goods” and “Consumer Services” sectors were replaced with “Consumer Discretionary” and “Consumer Staples”. These new consumer categories are not direct replacements, therefore we are unable to show historical data on a like-for-like basis using the new ICB classifications. The new framework has been adopted in this report.
4. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and closed end funds are excluded from the analysis. The ranking does not compensate for changes in currency exchange rates.
5. The report can be found here.

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