Belgium’s 5,000 largest companies collectively recorded a turnover of almost €1 trillion last year, according to the latest "Trends Top 5,000" report released on Tuesday.
Belgium's biggest companies brought in sales of €973 billion last year – a 0.41% increase compared to 2022. But the report notes that profit margins for large businesses in Belgium are under pressure.
Belgium's biggest company last year (in terms of turnover) was Toyota Motor Europe, based in Brussels, which reported a turnover of €41.5 billion.
In second place was pharmaceutical company Pfizer, based in Puurs, with a turnover of €38.8 billion. The US giant secured second place despite a decrease of almost €30 billion in turnover compared to 2022.
Three other companies in Belgium achieved sales exceeding €20 billion: oil and gas companies ExxonMobil and TotalEnergies, and pharmaceutical company Janssen Pharmaceutica.
Is Belgium a land of opportunity?
Pascal Flisch, an analyst for Trends Business Information, noted that one-third of the 5,000 largest companies saw their turnover decrease. Additionally, nearly half of the companies ended the fiscal year with a lower gross operating profit (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation). Despite this, the total EBITDA increased by 1.5%, reaching €77.3 billion.
Flisch also pointed out that profitability is under pressure, especially among the largest companies. Higher production costs and international competition make it more challenging for these companies to pass on cost increases.
"The real profitability of companies with more than a thousand employees is decreasing significantly. At some point, they will question whether it is still worth investing in Belgium and if it might be cheaper elsewhere," Flisch warned.
