China passes Japan for first time in Fortune 500 list of biggest companies
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
WASHINGTON — China for the first time overtook Japan on the Fortune Global 500 list of the world’s biggest companies by revenue, the U.S. business magazine said Monday.
While U.S. firms held the plurality of slots on the list, with 132, Chinese firms came in second with 73 followed by 68 from Japan.
China’s ascent marked the addition of 12 companies to the prestigious list, while the number of European firms fell to 161 from 172 in 2011.
Anglo-Dutch energy giant Royal Dutch Shell retook….”