Who said big oil was a dying business? Fortune has released its Global 500, their "annual ranking of the world's largest corporations," and topping the charts is Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A), which, much like a Mariah Carey song, bumped up into the coveted number-one slot after some time at number three. The Netherlands-based oil company trumped its U.S. rival, Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) by $15 billion in sales and saw its revenue spike nearly 29% from 2007.

Speaking of Exxon, the company once again had a tiger in its tank, ranking number two in the world as oil futures bounced around in a nearly $100-dollar range, hitting $146 per barrel at its heights.

What would make the strongest case for a large fiscal stimulus package - - upwards of $1 trillion for infrastructure, energy, education programs, and for aid to the states, for a new electric grid, for the building of hospitals, schools, for improved water and sewerage systems, for the biggest build-out in the United States since the Great Society?

Investors could probably think of dozens, but economist David H. Wang has a compelling one: the condition of the U.S. consumer himself / herself, or what Wang calls the "consumer's dilemma."

Has the U.S. economy changed?

Now Wang proceeds with the assumption that the U.S. consumption-based economy will largely continue. If one disagrees with that premise, then Wang's thesis is mute moot, and we then also have a different U.S. economy that will require very different prescriptions to achieve sustainable growth.

But let's, for the sake of argument, assume that the consumer-based economy - - one that historically has accounted for roughly 60-65% of U.S. GDP - - is not going the way of the Edsel. That creates Wang's "consumer's dilemma." Namely, the U.S. economy requires the consumer to spend (buy things) to grow at capacity, but consumers have already consumed at too high a level for too long - - in some cases saving nothing at all -- and hence many will now increase their rate of savings to begin to make up for their many years of inadequate savings.

This post is one in a series on prominent company nicknames. See all 25, and share your thoughts and memories about The General below in the comments.

"The General" does not deserve its nickname any longer. Founded in 1908, General Motors (NYSE: GM) was the largest car company in the world for almost seven decades. It lost that distinction to Toyota (NYSE: TM) during the last year.

GM has 50% of the U.S. car market at one point. That is now down to 20%.

"The General" still maintains a number of the most successful brands in the world: Cadillac, Buick, Chevy, and Pontiac. Years of neglect have pushed the company into a position where it does not make competitive cars in its home market. It greatest current sales successes are in the Chinese market and Latin America.

In 1955, "The General" was the No.1 company in the Fortune 500. It held that position until 2000.

Alongside General Electric (NYSE: GE), GM is probably the most important American corporation of the last 100 years. That won't be true going forward.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

The stock market has fallen about 3000 points in a year. Corporate profits among the Fortune 500 are likely to decline a double-digit rates. Consumer spending is down. And the nation has lost more than 463,000 jobs in seven months, with unemployment rising.

And yet, we're told 'the economy is growing.'

What's going on here? Or, investors and readers may justifiably exclaim, "If this is growth, I'd hate to see what a recession looks like."

On Friday,BloggingStocks asked economist Peter Dawson to give an accurate read on the economic situation in these United States.

"Don't you have an easier question for a summer Friday?," Dawson said. "Kidding aside, what we're experiencing now is a growth-recession. And at this point, and we'll need a few more data points to confirm it, it's looking close to a textbook case of one."

During a growth-recession, the economy continues to grow, barely, Dawson says, but almost all of the other indicators continue to move in a destructive direction.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) has again been placed at the top of the latest annual Fortune 500 list. Released this morning, Wal-Mart was again recognized as being the largest company in the U.S. by revenue, although not by profit. That honor goes to Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), which made a profit of $40.6 billion in calendar year 2007 compared to Wal-Mart's $12.7 billion.

Just two non-oil companies were located in the top five: Wal-Mart and General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM). If you own an SUV and will be filling up your gas tank today, remember that. Or, if you're pinched for money due to a mortgage reset recently, you'll probably not want to remember it. Point is this: Wal-Mart is raking in more sales than ever, and 2008 probably won't slow down as U.S. consumers everywhere flock to bargains and low prices in the midst of mortgage nightmares, gas prices that are out of control and a shaky economy.

The question is this: will you be shopping at Wal-Mart more this year as the uncertainty of the economy continues to swirl every day? If you are a non-Wal-Mart shopper, will you consider the company as your new friend should the need come to pinch every possible penny? The Bentonville, Arkansas retailer hopes so. It's already placing bets on being at the top of the Fortune 500 yet again a year from now.

Fortune released this year's Global 500 list today, and this years top 10 list is loaded with oil producers. This year's #1 slot goes to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) but after that we see a whole slew of big oil names hitting the list.

Following closely on the heels of Wal-Mart comes the world's largest oil company, Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) who briefly unseated Wal-Mart as the perennial top spot winner last year. Exxon Mobil came up just a little bit shy this year of the top sport and allowed Wal-Mart to get back on top for the fifth time in the last six years. Wal-Mart claimed the top spot this year with $351.1 billion which was slightly higher than Exxon's $347.2 billion.

Even though Exxon was unable to claim the top spot again for the largest company, it does get to boast being the most profitable company in the world, with revenues profits last year of $39.5 billion compared to Wal-Marts revenues profit of $11.2 billion.

After Exxon on the list we see a whole slew of oil companies dominating the top spots. Other oil players ranking in the top ten are:

Since its upside surprise when it reported last quarter, enterprise software giant Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) has continued with its philosophy of growth through acquisition by acquiring LODESTAR Corp., which supplies software solutions to utilities, as well as product lifecycle management leader Agile Software Corp. (NASDAQ: AGIL). And the share price has been trending upward the past three months.

But it hasn't all been peaches and cream. Billionaire George Soros recently shifted his focus away from Oracle and some other tech stocks in favor of Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT). BloggingStocks contributor Georges Yared thinks Oracle's glory days, in terms of growth, may be behind it, and even that it may be a stock for suckers.

Oracle's rivalry with Germany-based SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) continues, of course, not only in the courtroom -- Oracle recently added copyright infringement to its theft charges against SAP -- but also into small and medium-sized companies, where some early indicators suggest Oracle may have the edge. Oddly enough, there has been speculation that Oracle may try to acquire SAP, unlikely though that may be, after it was rumored that Oracle has been purchasing SAP stock.

But Oracle remains part of the Fortune 500, and BloggingStocks contributor Brent Archer thinks the stock might be a bargain. One analyst upgraded Oracle just last week. According to Thomson Financial, Wall Street consensus rates ORCL a buy (12 strong buy, 11 buy, 12 hold). When Oracle reports earnings on June 26, analysts expect earnings per share for this quarter to come in at 35 cents, compared to 25 cents actual from last quarter, and 25 cents a year ago. Its market cap is $96.8 billion, and its P/E ratio is 18.95 (the industry average is 23.49). The consensus price target is $21.25; the 52-week low was $13.77 in July of 2006 and $19.95 last week. It closed Tuesday at $19.88.

Analysts, shareholders (and would-be shareholders), and many others no doubt will be keeping on eye on Memphis-based FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX), the global leader in express transport and delivery, when it reports Q4 2007 earnings next Wednesday, June 20. Many consider FedEx to be a bellwether for the economy.

Since FedEx reported a mild Q3 back in March, the trend of its share price hasn't been especially impressive these past three months. Blame it on the economy, fuel costs, the weather, or stiff competition from rivals United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) and DHL, a Deutsche Post (LSE: DPO) company, but FedEx has struggled of late, as reflected perhaps in the BloggingStocks Battle of the Brands match-up: FedEx vs. UPS. Analysts' feelings are mixed on FedEx as well, and the company does still face such troubles as discrimination lawsuits.

But it's no accident that FedEx is within the Fortune 500's top ranks. It continues to expand, both domestically and internationally, and stands to benefit from impending increased air traffic between China and the United States. General Motors (NYSE: GM) recently declared FedEx its 2006 Supplier of the Year, and the FAA has given FedEx a vote of confidence as well. And in May, FedEx announced a 10% boost in its cash dividend, to ten cents per share. The Motley Fool thinks FedEx may be a bargain, as well.

According to Thomson Financial, the brokers' consensus on FedEx is buy (6 buy, 7 strong buy, 7 hold). Its P/E is 15.89 (compared to 11.96 industry average), and its market cap is $33.16 billion. When FedEx reports earnings next week, Wall Street is expecting revenue of $9.14 billion, or earnings per share of $1.89, compared to $1.82 actual last quarter, and $1.35 a year ago. Its price target is $124.42; the 52-week low was $97.79 in August 2006 and the high was $121.42 near the end of this past February. FedEx closed Wednesday at $108.82.

After sitting on top of the Fortune 500 list last year, Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) gave the top slot back to perennial leader Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) this year. This marks that fifth time in six year that Wal-Mart has occupied the pole position.

It was definitely a close battle for the top position and Exxon Mobil did not get beat by too big of a margin. For the full year 2006, Exxon Mobil saw revenues of $347.2 billion which was just a bit shy of Wal-Mart's $351.1 billion. While the battle for the #1 spot was a close one, there was really no other competition for Exxon and Wal-Mart with the #3 company coming in well beneath the big 2. Earning #3 on the list this year was General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) with $207.3 billion in revenue. Granted the biggest difference is that GM actually lost money last year despite the large revenues it was able to pull in.

The remaining two slots in the top 5 also went to oil companies with Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) pulling in the #3 slot with $200.5 billion in revenues and ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) rounding out the #5 slot with a respectable $172.4 billion in revenues for the year.

Last year was definitely a good year to be in the oil business, and it is definitely shaping up to be another stellar year. It's hard to bet against oil these days!

If you are interested in seeing where your favorite companies ranked, you can find a full list of the top 500 companies here.

Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last two years working as an analyst for the online investment advisory service Investor's Observer. DISCLOSURE: Mr. Fowlkes owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that include holdings in XOM.

With $36.8 billion in revenues, Motorola (NYSE: MOT) made the 2006 Fortune Global 500 list at #152. Motorola beat out its competitors Cisco Systems #241, Ericsson #319, and Alcatel #411. Nokia Corporation #131 remains the world's largest communications equipment company with $42.5 billion in revenues.

There is more good news. Motorola in the US has issued a co-branded cell phone for the Product RED high profile fundraising campaign led by Bono, among others. Motorola will donate up to 50% of the profits from RED cell phone purchases to Global Fund to help fight the spread of AIDS in Africa. Such cause-related shopping campaigns have been very successful in England. Bono and Project RED wish to replicate that success during the holiday shopping season in the US.

Motorola recently announced plans to acquire Symbol Technologies, maker of bar code and inventory-scanning technology, in a deal valued at $15 per Symbol share for a total of $3.9 billion. The deal is supposed to close by early 2007. If the deal falls through under certain circumstances, Symbol Technologies could end up owing Motorola as much as $130 million. Motorola may need to hope that the deal does in fact fall apart. Motorola can then use that money to pay off part of the $3.7 billion plus interest Iridium creditors are demanding Motorola give back. Iridium LLC paid more than $5 billion to its parent company Motorola to build Iridium's satellite system. Creditors allege Motorola knew at the time that Iridium would not be financially viable, but took the money anyway. At issue is just how much Motorola's senior management knew about Iridium's financial problems prior to its bankruptcy in 1999.

With $51.4 billion in revenues, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) ranks #101 on 2006 Fortune's Global 500 list. Pfizer remains the world's largest drugmaker, ahead of its competitors Johnson & Johnson #104 with $50.5 billion in revenues; GlaxoSmithKline #143 with $39.4 billion in revenues; Sanofi-Aventis #159 with $35.4 billion in revenues; and Novartis Group #177 with $32.2 billion in revenues.

Also this week, Pfizer bought worldwide exclusive rights to human gene RTP-801 from Quark Biotech Inc., an Israeli biotech firm. Quark Biotech had recently acquired the license to this gene from Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. Details of Pfizer's deal with Quark Biotech were not made public but could be very lucrative if Pfizer can actually develop a treatment to modify mutations in gene RTP-801, the gene that controls for most cases of blindness in the developed world due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). With an aging baby boomer population, age-related vision problems will increase exponentially. Currently about 15 million Americans age 50+ are affected with AMD. In AMD fluid accummulates behind the retina, eventually resulting in vision loss. There is presently no cure for AMD, but Pfizer currently owns the drug Macugen used to retard the effects of AMD. Pfizer will share with Quark ,and via Quark Alnylam, royalties on any products that actually make it to market to treat and/or cure AMD.

Pfizer is also involved in the eradication of another widespread disease, malaria. Pfizer has joined former President Clinton's Global Initiative to stamp out the leading cause of child mortality in Africa. With a donation of $15 million spread over 5 years, Pfizer is underwriting malaria treatment programs by UNICEF and WHO in Senegal, Ghana and Kenya. Pfizer's recent donation is a continuation of its malaria research program already underway in 10 countries around the world. In addition to anti-malarial drugs, Pfizer is also funding education programs for malaria patients and caregivers.

ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) has become the king of the hill on this year's Fortune Global 500 list. With the run up oil has had over the last couple of years (at least up until the last 3 weeks) it should come as no surprise that this years top 10 consists of 5 oil companies. Last year's top company, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) didn't fall very far, and managed to follow XOM in the second place position.

How did ExxonMobil manage to get to the top? Easy... the company posted $339.9 billion in revenues with $36.1 billion in profits. Wal-Mart came in with $315.6 billion in revenues with $11.2 billion profits. A good deal of last year's explosion in oil prices came as a result of damage from hurricane Katrina which crippled much of the Gulf's oil supplies. So far this year we have not been hit with any major hurricanes which has led in a big part to the recent sell off seen in oil.

Other oil stocks in the top ten this year:

ExxonMobil, says the Human Rights Campaign, is a big zero. A new report out from HRC, the nation's largest lesbian and gay political organization, scores American companies on how well they are reaching out to their gay and lesbian workforce, and ExxonMobil finds itself at the bottom of the list.

According to the report from HRC, companies are scored in handful of areas. For a company to receive a perfect score they must demonstrate that they have policies in place for banning discrimination based on sexual orientation, they must provide partner benefits, offer diversity training, and advertise to the gay community. Several companies that we follow closely on BloggingStocks scored perfect 100's in the report. They include Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), Apple Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL). Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX) came in with an 85 score.

As For ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM)... well, the picture isn't so pretty. Exxon managed to be one of only three companies in the report that came in with a score of zero. Why the poor score? The company did not even offer minimal benefits or workplace protection for gay employees. When asked about the report ExxonMobil spokesman Russ Roberts stated that Exxon relied on used the "definition of spouse used in federal legislation, which has the effect of limiting coverage to heterosexual couples," but also added that XOM had in place "written policies [that] prohibit discrimination or harassment for any reason, including sexual orientation." Apparently that wasn't enough to give them any points for good measure. Only two other companies came in with zero scores: Midwestern retailer Meijer Inc. and Plano, Texas-based Perot Systems technology consultants.