Powerful global corporations have existed throughout history. However, today’s corporations are nothing like those of the past – not in terms of size, market cap and influence, anyway.
Indeed, so big are some of today’s global corporations that their market caps actually dwarf the economies of many of the world’s countries. Others come quite close to matching the GDP of some of the world’s richest countries.
So, which companies have such big market caps, and how can investors invest in them? Read on to find out.
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Just how big are the market caps of global corporations?
Finder.com, the personal finance comparison site, has built a live ‘market cap map’ that essentially allows investors to compare the gross domestic product (GDP) of every country on the globe with the publicly traded firms that have a comparable market cap.
A quick look at the map reveals some very interesting findings. For example, it shows that only seven countries in the world (the US, China, Japan, Germany, the UK, India and France) have a GDP that’s higher than the largest company’s market cap!
Apple and Saudi-Arabian oil company Saudi Aramco, the two biggest companies in the world by market cap, actually have bigger market caps than all countries in the world save for these seven!
Here are a few of the world’s top companies whose market caps are similar to a country’s GDP:
Apple’s market cap, ($2.53 trillion) is closest to the GDP of France ($2.94 trillion).
The market cap of Tesla, the car electric maker ($866.38 billion), is closest to the GDP of Saudi Arabia ($842.59 billion).
Amazon’s market cap of $1.48 trillion is closest to the GDP of Spain ($1.44 trillion).
Alphabet (Google’s parent company) has a market cap of $1.68 trillion, which is closest to the GDP of Brazil or Russia (both $1.65 trillion).
What about UK companies?
Closer to home, here are a few local companies with market caps that are similar to a country’s GDP:
BT has a market cap of $24.99 billion, which is similar to Iceland’s GDP of $25.48 billion.
NatWest has a market cap of $34.36 billion. By comparison, Sudan’s GDP is $35.92 billion.
Aviva has a market cap of $20.42 billion, which is closest to Zambia’s GDP of $21.7 billion.
Ocado’s market cap of $13.98 billion is similar to Madagascar’s GDP of $14.1 billion.
To see other corporations with a market cap comparable to a country’s GDP, check out the market cap map.
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How can you invest in companies that are as big as countries?
Investing in these enormous corporations is actually quite easy – as long as they are publicly traded. There are several ways to invest, but one of the easiest and most efficient is through a stocks and shares ISA.
A stocks and shares ISA is a special type of investment account that offers a wide variety of investment options, including the shares of big global corporations like Apple, Tesla and Amazon, without having to pay any tax on any growth on investment or any dividends.
If you don’t have a stocks and shares ISA already, check out our list of top-rated stocks and shares ISAs to help you narrow down your choices.
Just remember that investing is always risky. Negative market factors can affect a company regardless of its size or market cap and cause its business to suffer and its shares to fall in value.
As an investor, make sure to do your homework before parting with your money and only invest at a risk level that you are comfortable with.
The post Revealed! Publicly traded companies that are as big as entire countries and how to invest in them appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.
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