Five themes have emerged from BRW1000 (Business Review Weekly's report on an IBISWorld survey of the nation's biggest companies), which are representative of the performance of the Australian economy as a whole. These are:

• The big are getting bigger. The giants at the top of the corporate ladder are continuing to expand at a rapid rate

• Public companies performed better than private, foreign-owned and government enterprises

• Profits are increasing faster than revenue,employee numbers and net assetts, suggesting that Australia's biggest companies are expanding efficiently and profitably.

• Foreign-owned companies are on the rise in Australia, and Australian-owned companies are becoming more global in scope

• The China-led resources boom is a long term story, suggesting continued strong future performance for companies like BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto

Source: BRW November 10-December 7, 2005