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FORTUNE.COM // JUNE .1 .19
POWER IT’S WELL UNDERSTOOD in the United States that in
recent decades, the spoils of the nation’s economic
growth have gone disproportionately to the wealthiest few. But a
similar phenomenon exists among U.S. corporations. More and
more of their collective revenues are concentrated in a relatively
small number of large firms: the corporate giants.
Look no further than the Fortune 500 in this issue. Last
year, America’s 500 largest corporations tallied a record
$13.7 trillion in revenues, a figure equivalent to more than
two-thirds of the U.S. economy. Of those trillions and trillions of
sales, 47.7% of them belonged to the list’s top 50 firms, up from
In the Land
of Giants
America’s corporate colossi are
using their positional advantage to
get even larger. Why competitors,
workers, and consumers should
be worried. By Erika Fry
ILLUSTRATION BY EDDIE GUY
