Singapore 1000 companies also enjoyed a second consecutive year of double-digit profit growth and set a new combined profit record of S$210.7 billion.

Singapore’s top 1000 companies generated the highest combined turnover and profits in the entire 32-year history of the rankings. The Singapore 1000 (S1000) companies produced a combined turnover of S$3.15 trillion, surpassing the S$3 trillion record set in 2016. This also represents a 13.0% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth from S$2.79 trillion in 2018,  according to research by DP Info and EY.

S1000 companies enjoyed a second consecutive year of double-digit profit growth and superseded the previous combined profit record of S$182.8 billion set in 2018. They recorded a combined profit of S$210.7 billion in 2019, representing a 15.3% y-o-y profit growth from 2018.

DP Info uses its unique database of audited financials from 1 June 2017 to 31 May 2018 (2019 ranking period) of over 70,000 companies.

“Many of Singapore’s top companies have broadly benefited from the better than expected economic growth experienced during the ranking period,” says the study.

Service and a digital economy

Services, Information and Communications, and Finance sectors saw an upward growth trajectory in terms of combined turnover. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.1% based on the average CAGR of the three sectors over the past five years. Specifically, the Services sector saw the highest increase in combined turnover among all sectors, recording a 21.9% y-o-y growth. This was followed by the Information & Communications and Finance sectors which experienced a y-o-y combined turnover growth of 19.8% and 15.3% respectively.

2019 also witnessed more companies having an annual turnover of more than S$100 million within the past five years. There are now 2,600 companies with an annual turnover of over S$100 million, an increase from 2,414 companies in 2018. This signifies capability growth among Singapore-based corporates that will enable them to remain competitive.

SMEs see a recovery in turnover

The Singapore SME 1000 companies saw a recovery in both their combined turnover and profits after the decline recorded in 2018, where it decreased y-o-y by 11.8% and 17.1% respectively. This year, SME1000 companies have seen their combined turnover increasing by 1.7% to S$27.2 billion.

Another positive sign of recovery among SMEs this year is that almost four-fifths of SME1000 companies are now profitable, where combined profits have increased by 16.0% to S$3.3 billion.

“Overall, Singapore SMEs have performed reasonably well despite the challenging macroeconomic conditions,” says said James Gothard, general manager, Credit Services & Strategy SEA of Experian.

Max Loh, EY ASEAN and Singapore managing partner, added, “It is important that businesses go beyond identifying technologies with the traditional roles of improving process efficiencies and financial data, to focus on the innovative roles of improving customer experience and creating new business models, so as to deliver greater value.”

DP Information Group (DP Info) is Singapore’s leading provider of information, analysis and intelligence on the Singapore corporate sector.