On June 18, Fortune magazine announced the Southeast Asia 500 rankings for 2024. This marks the first time Fortune has published a ranking of the region's 500 largest companies based on their fiscal year 2023 revenues.

Fortune gives attention to Southeast Asia, as the region plays an increasingly important role in the global economy thanks to changing supply chains and the rapid growth of the region's economies.

This ranking includes companies from 7 Southeast Asian countries: Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Indonesia leads with 110 companies, followed by Thailand with 107, Malaysia with 89, Singapore with 84, Vietnam with 70, the Philippines with 38, and Cambodia with 2 companies.

Regarding revenue, Trafigura, a commodity trading company, headquartered in Singapore, is at the top of the list, with an impressive revenue of 244 billion USD. This is a private company operating in the minerals, metals, and energy sectors. It has the smallest number of employees and the second-highest profit among the top 10 companies in terms of revenue.

The top 10 companies in the Southeast Asia 500 Ranking operate in different sectors. There are 3 companies in the energy sector, including Thailand's PTT ranked 2nd, Indonesia's Pertamina ranked 3rd, and Indonesia’s state-owned electricity company, Perusahaan Listrik Negara, ranked 6th.

Notably, Singapore has the most companies in the top 10. Besides Trafigura, there is also Wilmar ranked 4th, Olam ranked 5th, Flex ranked 8th, and DBS ranked 10th. Additionally, the top 10 also includes Thailand's CP All, ranked 7th, and the Philippines' San Miguel, ranked 9th.

The total reported revenue of the top 10 companies amounts to 650 billion USD. This figure represents more than one-third of the total revenue for fiscal year 2023 of all Southeast Asia 500 companies, with a total reported revenue of 1,800 billion USD. Companies included in the list had to achieve a minimum revenue threshold of 460.8 million USD.

Overall, Fortune reports that revenue and profits of 500 companies in the Southeast Asia 500 ranking decreased over the past year. This change is attributed to a weak energy market, impacting impressive growth in many other sectors. Fast-growing companies include Indonesian mining companies such as Harita Nickel and Merdeka Battery Materials, travel companies such as Thai Airways, as well as several insurance and banking companies.

“The Fortune Southeast Asia 500 reflects a dynamic and rapidly changing region - one whose core economy is growing significantly faster than Europe or the US. This is partly due to Southeast Asia taking on a much more important role in the global economy, especially as many of the multinational Global 500 companies have shifted much of their supply chains to Southeast Asian countries,” said Mr. Clay Chandler, Executive Editor of Fortune, Asia.

The companies listed in the Southeast Asia 500 for the first time will join the group of leading companies recognized under the Fortune 500, including the original Fortune 500, Fortune Global 500, Fortune Europe 500, and Fortune China 500. The Fortune Southeast Asia 500 and the stories of these companies will be available on newsstands across Asia starting June 18, 2024. 

Among the Vietnamese companies on the Fortune Southeast Asia 500, the top 50 include Petrolimex (ranked 23rd), with 11.5 billion USD in revenue; Agribank (37th), with 7.536 billion USD in revenue; BIDV (39th), with 7.518 billion USD; Vingroup (45th), with 6.777 billion USD; and Vietinbank (48th), with 6.583 billion USD.