According to a report released Tuesday by corporate tracker CEO Score, electronics giant Samsung Electronics remained No. 1 with 333.61 trillion won (US$230 billion) in sales as of the end of last year, up 10.9 percent from a year earlier and the highest on record. Hyundai Motor ranked second with 186.25 trillion won, followed by its affiliate Kia with 114.14 trillion won. Together, the two surpassed 300 trillion won in combined sales for the first time.
Korea Electric Power Corporation was fourth with 97.43 trillion won, leaving the top four unchanged from the previous year.
SK hynix moved up two spots to No. 5 after posting 97.15 trillion won in sales, boosted by surging demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM). CEO Score cited the jump as a clear example of how growth in the AI chip market is reshaping corporate rankings.
Defense company Hanwha rose three spots to No. 7 on increased orders, while SK On jumped to No. 9 from No. 60 following mergers among its affiliates. SK Innovation made the biggest leap, climbing 190 places on a sharp increase in dividend income.
Sales levels required to make the top 500 also rose, with the minimum threshold climbing by 733 billion won or 5.5 percent, to 1.40 trillion won, while total sales of all 500 companies grew 4.7 percent to 4,305 trillion won.
Thirty-five companies newly joined the list, up two from a year earlier. They included firms that grew through mergers and acquisitions, such as Hanwha Hotels & Resorts and Sono International, as well as fast-growing players like Musinsa, a streetwear brand that has become one of South Korea's hottest fashion platforms.
Meanwhile, companies in construction, shipping, and aviation sectors dropped off the list.
By industry, auto and auto-parts companies made up the largest group with 49 firms, followed by IT and electronics with 39, retailers with 39, services with 38, and petrochemicals and refiners with 37.
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