There are 14 fewer EMEA firms on The Global 2000 list this year, as the region struggled with weak growth in sales (4%) and assets (a piddling 1%). Still, profits grew 54%, and market values were on par with Asia and the U.S., suggesting that investors still see value in the region. Firms pulled through the credit crisis by fiercely protecting profits and balance sheets, with Spain's BBVA and German airline Lufthansa employing clever cost-cutting measures. The sovereign-debt crisis has proved a red herring as bureaucrats found the backstops needed for troubled nations like Greece, Ireland and Portugal. The real headwinds are inflation and interest rates. Among Europe's promising names are SKF and Atlas Copco, which are selling into the Chinese industrial revolution.
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