NEWS ABOUT: Fortune 500
Fortune 500 stories: 6 news briefs
First female-to-female handoff at big firm; first black woman in role
CNNMoney May 22, 09 9:14 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
The announcement that Ursula Burns will replace Anne Mulcahy as head of Xerox is brimming with historical significance, writes Patricia Sellers in Fortune . Not only is it the first woman-to-woman CEO handoff in Fortune 500 history, but Burns will be the first black woman to head a Fortune 500 company. It proves the “Queen Bee” era—in which businesswomen eschewed helping other women, afraid there wasn’t enough room for all of them—is over.
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Wal-Mart slips to second in 'worst-ever' year for the 500
CNNMoney Apr 20, 09 6:00 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Exxon Mobil snagged a whopping $443 billion in revenue to unseat Wal-Mart from the top spot in this year's Fortune 500 list, CNN reports. The two behemoths thrived on jacked-up oil prices and the recession respectively, but the picture was a lot bleaker for most of the rest of the 500—overall earnings took a record 85% dive to $98.9 billion from $645.2 billion the year before.
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Exxon Mobil repeats 2007 performance, finishes second

Fortune Magazine Apr 21, 08 4:07 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Wal-Mart nosed out Exxon Mobil for the second consecutive year to land atop the 2008 Fortune 500, with $37.7 billion in revenues, the magazine said today. In profits, the oil company far outstripped the megaretailer. Three of the top 5 on the list were oil companies, the AP reports. ChevronTexaco (No. 3) and GM (No. 4) swapped places, and ConocoPhillips again rounded out the top 5.
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He's worth $62B; Gates is now third with $58B.

Forbes Mar 5, 08 7:44 PM CST
(Newser Summary) -
Bill Gates has passed the gilded torch: Warren Buffett and Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim have ended the Microsoft founder's 13-year reign as richest man on earth, Forbes reports. Buffett's fortune grew $10 billion this year to $62 billion, while Slim weighs in with an estimated $60 billion. Gates trails with a piddling $58 billion.
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Departure of Merrill, Time Warner chiefs knocks total to four

Associated Press Nov 6, 07 9:03 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
The departure of Dick Parsons from Time Warner and Stan O'Neal from Merrill Lynch has reduced the already sparse population of African-American CEOs running Fortune 500 companies to an extremely paltry four, reports AP. CEOs of any color have a short shelf life, and the small numbers of black chiefs can make two resignations look like an overwhelming trend.
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Designer was first woman to found Fortune 500 company

Los Angeles Times Jun 28, 07 5:03 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Designer Liz Claiborne, whose styles aimed at career women revolutionized everyday fashion sense in America and brought feminine new looks to the workplace, is dead at 78. She was the first woman founder of a Fortune 500 company. Claiborne died Tuesday in New York, after a lengthy battle with bone cancer.
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