????20年前，《財(cái)富》美國(guó)500強(qiáng)榜單（Fortune 500）經(jīng)歷了一次重大調(diào)整。這份榜單最早誕生于1955年，起初只包含工業(yè)公司。畢竟在20世紀(jì)中期，最重要的公司都是從事生產(chǎn)制造的。而其余公司則被列入了《財(cái)富》“美國(guó)服務(wù)企業(yè)500強(qiáng)排行榜”（Fortune Service 500）。

????1995年，《財(cái)富》編輯決定整合這兩份榜單。盡管通用汽車等傳統(tǒng)工業(yè)巨頭仍在榜上名列前茅，但當(dāng)年排名第4的沃爾瑪?shù)刃律习癯蓡T也證明：出售產(chǎn)品或服務(wù)的公司重要性并不比制造公司低。

????當(dāng)然，無(wú)論在任何時(shí)候，美國(guó)500強(qiáng)中市值最高的公司和收入最高的公司都有很大差別。市值更多體現(xiàn)的是市場(chǎng)對(duì)美國(guó)產(chǎn)業(yè)的未來(lái)（而不是當(dāng)下?tīng)顩r）的看法。研究美國(guó)500強(qiáng)榜單調(diào)整后這20年來(lái)市值最高的公司，可以讓我們窺得美國(guó)近年來(lái)經(jīng)濟(jì)史的一角。

????20年前，《財(cái)富》美國(guó)500強(qiáng)中市值最高的公司是通用電氣，這是美國(guó)多元化大公司和工業(yè)時(shí)代留存下來(lái)的巨頭。在富有傳奇色彩的董事長(zhǎng)兼CEO杰克·韋爾奇任內(nèi)，通用電氣進(jìn)行了多次收購(gòu)，將美國(guó)全國(guó)廣播公司和霍尼韋爾等納入麾下，使得公司市值水漲船高。但很快，微軟就趕超了通用電氣，展現(xiàn)出個(gè)人電腦對(duì)美國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)的驚人影響力。而在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)泡沫破滅之后，通用電氣一度短暫地重返榜首。

????緊接著，過(guò)去十年，受石油供應(yīng)減少、新興市場(chǎng)飛速發(fā)展的推動(dòng)，“石油熱潮”將埃克森美孚推上了市值最高公司的寶座。這家油氣巨頭占據(jù)榜首達(dá)七年之久，隨后被蘋果趕超，后者開(kāi)始占據(jù)這一王座直至今天。我們目前仍然生活在一個(gè)被智能手機(jī)、App和其他數(shù)字娛樂(lè)所主導(dǎo)的世界，而所有這些領(lǐng)域，蘋果都牢牢地掌控著大權(quán)。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：嚴(yán)匡正

????審校：任文科

????Twenty years ago, the Fortune 500 underwent a major relaunch. The original list, which was first published in 1955, only included industrial companies. In the middle of the 20th century, after all, the most important companiesmade things. The rest were relegated to the Fortune Service 500.

????In 1995, Fortune’s editors decided to combine the two lists. And while industrial giants like General Motors

????still dominated, new entrants–like Walmart , which was No. 4 that year–showed that the companies selling products or services could be just as important as those that actually manufactured them.

????Of course, at any given point in time, the most valuable companies on the Fortune 500 can differ significantly from the companies bringing in the most revenue. A measurement like market capitalization tells us more about what the market believes will be the future of American industry, rather than its present. Studying the most valuable companies on the Fortune 500 since it was reorganized 20 years ago offers a telling portrait of recent American economic history.

????The most valuable company on the Fortune 500 20 years ago, General Electric , was a holdover from America’s conglomerate and industrial era. The company’s value was buoyed by the many acquisitions legendary Chairman and CEO Jack Welch made throughout his tenure, like NBC and Honeywell. But soon, Microsoft overtook GE, making clear the overwhelming influence that personal computers had over the U.S. economy. GE briefly reclaimed the top spot following the dot-com crash.

????But the oil boom of the last decade, fueled by dwindling supplies and huge growth in emerging markets, pushed Exxon Mobil into the top spot. The oil and gas giant stayed at the top of the heap for seven years, until Apple surged ahead to claim the title it still holds today. We still live in a world dominated by smartphones, apps, and other digital entertainment, all areas that Apple has firmly planted flags.