Forbes Middle East Magazine released its “Top 100 Listed Companies in the Middle East 2019” in which it ranked companies according to a composite score that takes into account four metrics with equal weights, namely their sales, profits, total assets, and market value. The magazine unveiled that the total assets of the top 100 listed companies stood at $3 trillion, with a combined market value of $945 billion. The magazine also revealed that the Middle East’s top 100 listed companies registered consolidated sales of $336 billion and generated profits amounting to $71 billion. Saudi Arabia Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), the petrochemical giant, topped the list for yet another consecutive year, reporting sales of $45.1 billion, profits of $8.5 billion, assets of $85.3 billion, and a market value of $98.6 billion. Qatar National Bank (QNB) ranked second on Forbes’ 2019 list (sales: $15.6 billion; profits: $3.8 billion; assets: $236.9 billion; market value: $49.6 billion), followed by the Emirati-based First Abu Dhabi Bank (sales: $8.1 billion; profits: $3.3 billion; assets: $203.0 billion; market value: $47.6 billion), only to name a few.

Locally, Lebanon made it on the list through four listed banks, namely Bank Audi, which occupied the first place locally and the 31^st regionally (sales: $3.5 billion; profits: $0.50 billion; assets: $47.0 billion; market value: $2.4 billion), followed by BLOM Bank (regional rank: 39^th; sales: $2.4 billion; profits: $0.51 billion; assets: $36.5 billion; market value: $1.8 billion), Byblos Bank (regional rank: 69^th; sales: $1.5 billion; profits: $0.16 billion; assets: $24.9 billion; market value: $1.0 billion), and Bank of Beirut (regional rank: 71^st; sales: $1.0 billion; profits: $0.20 billion; assets: $18.3 billion; market value: $1.6 billion).

Overall, the banks and financial services industry clearly dominated the list with a share of 47% of the top 100 listed companies in the Middle East, followed at quite a distance by the industrial sector (15%), the real estate and construction industry (8%), and the telecommunications sector (6%), only to name a few. Country-wise, Saudi Arabian companies were the most spotted across the list with a share of 29%, followed by Emirati (20%), Qatari (19%), Kuwaiti (8%), and Lebanese (4%) companies, among others.