(Yicai) Aug. 3 -- Leading Chinese silicon producer Tongwei Group has become the first photovoltaic company to join the Fortune Global 500 list.

Tongwei ranked 476th with revenue of USD31.9 billion last year, according to the rankings released yesterday by media group Fortune. The Chengdu-based company had a net profit of USD1.6 billion, ranking it 294th, and was 34th for return on equity at 42.9 percent, the highest among the 142 Chinese firms represented.

China has the most companies in the Fortune Global 500, though the number based in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong declined for the first time in 15 years, falling by one to 135.

US retailer Walmart retained the world’s largest firm for the 10th consecutive year, with revenue of USD611.3 billion in 2022. Oil giant Saudi Aramco and China’s State Grid were second and third with at USD603.6 billion and USD530 billion, respectively.

The total revenue of Fortune 500 firms rose 8.4 percent to about USD41 trillion from the previous ranking. Their total net profit shrank 6.5 percent to USD2.9 trillion because of the global economic downturn.

Seven Chinese businesses, including Tongwei, made the list for the first time this year. Lithium battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology ranked 292nd with USD48.8 billion in revenue, and takeout giant Meituan was 467th with USD32.7 billion.

Carmaker BYD jumped from the 436th last year to the 212th this year. That climb was the biggest among Chinese companies and the second-largest among all firms on the list after US information technology services provider TD Synnex, which shot up 236 places to 215th.

Editor: Dou Shicong, Futura Costaglione