An annual study by industry market research firm IBISWorld into the top 1000 Australian companies in terms of earnings has put the retailers Wesfarmers and Woolworths in the top two spots for 2016.
Wesfarmers had total revenues last year of $66 billion, Woolworths had $58 billion (but was down 1.2 per cent due to the Masters Hardware disaster), CBA was third with $44 billion, Westpac fourth with $37 billion and NAB rounded out the top five with $36 billion. It’s thought the banks have usurped the miners on the list following sharp falls in gas and mineral prices over the past 12 months.
The top 10 included:
The companies on the list account for $1.98 trillion in total revenue, up from 1.9 per cent from the previous year.
Two-thirds of the companies on the list reported revenue growth for the year, but net profit after tax saw a decline.
There were 101 newcomers to the 2016 list, including Aussie tech giant Atlassian at number 772 with revenue of $457.1 million.
