The Fortune 500 — Fortune’s annual list of the largest U.S. corporations ranked by total revenue — is out today. And here’s a fun fact: Just 500 companies produced enough revenue last year to equal two-thirds of the entire economic output of the United States. These American businesses sold an astounding $13.7 trillion worth of goods and services, a record sum whether you measure it in nominal dollars or adjusted for inflation. A few interesting facts from this year’s 500:
• Walmart earned the top spot on the Fortune 500 list for the seventh straight year.
• Apple (No. 3) was the 500’s most profitable company for the fifth straight year ($59.5 billion in profits). The company debuted on the list at No. 411 in 1983.
• Amazon.com joined the top five of the Fortune 500 for the first time, with a 31% jump in revenue. And its cloud-software empire helped it notch an annual profit of $10 billion for the first time.
Click to read more at www.fortune.com.