Although 2008 was considered a year during which the crisis severely impacted the economy and halted the growth of the best companies, in 2009, the newly created value of the 500 best companies in Croatia fell by almost 15 percent.
According to the list published in Lider’s publication of the 500 best, along with the new issue from September 24, the revenues of the best companies are down by ten percent, amounting to 35.6 billion euros, their assets are 6.6 billion euros lower, and profits have fallen by a quarter. In the 500 best companies, 25,000 people have lost their jobs, productivity has decreased by 6.4 percent, and export results are 15 percent worse than the previous year. Zagrebačka banka, with 331 million euros of newly created value, is the best Croatian company of the past year. In addition to Zagrebačka, there are three other banks among the top 10, demonstrating that the banking sector has proven to be the most resilient to the crisis. A newcomer among the top ten is Hrvatska pošta, which, although it was not present a year earlier, immediately entered in sixth place with 194 million euros of newly created value on the list.
