Sixty-one Korean firms have made the Forbes 2024 Global 2000 List this year, including nine that are in the top 500, according to the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Thursday. However, the number of firms in the top 500 rankings — nine — is raising concerns over the nation's global economic competitiveness. Samsung Electronics ranked the highest among Korean firms in the Forbes list at No. 21, followed by Hyundai Motor Company at 93rd, Kia at 234th and KB Financial Group at 250th. Fifteen Korean firms were ranked between 501 and 1,000, 20 firms were positioned between 1,001 and 1,500 and 17 firms were placed between 1,501 and 2,000. According to the KCCI, the rankings of Korean firms appear relatively disappointing when focusing specifically on the top 500 as the number of Korean companies in that category lagged behind the United States with 176, China with 57, Japan with 45, the United Kingdom with 25, France with 24, Canada with 20, Germany with 18, India with 16 and Switzerland with 12. The KCCI said that No. 10 is underwhelming, considering the country's number of firms in the entire 2000 list. "Germany had 50 firms on the 2000 list, fewer than Korea. However, 18 German firms were ranked in the top 500. They were not only in the automobile industry but also in a wide range of industries such as IT, machinery and finance," a KCCI official said. "We must make more efforts to develop more global companies in more diverse industries like Germany." With 61 companies listed, Korea ranks sixth among countries with firms on the Forbes list. However, when it comes to operating profit, Korea's position has declined significantly. The total earnings from the 61 Korean companies amounted to $64.9 billion, placing Korea No. 12 in the world. That's even lower than those of countries with fewer numbers of companies on the list such as Canada with $110 billion, Germany with $102 billion and France with $144 billion. "In this era when countries are fiercely locking horns over cutting-edge industries, the number of global companies a country has directly reflects its global competitiveness," the KCCI official said. "We need to introduce more business-friendly policies so that more global firms can grow across a wide range of industries." (ICE SEOUL)

Fonte notizia: The Korea Times