List of companies of the United Kingdom K-Z
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK or U.K.) or Britain, is a sovereign country located off the northwestern coast of the European mainland. It includes the island of Great Britain, the northeastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands. The United Kingdom consists of four constituent countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom is a highly developed country with a market-orientated economy and is a member of the Group of 7 (formerly G8) leading  industrialised countries. It is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal gross domestic product (GDP), ninth-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) and twenty first-largest by GDP per capita. In 2017, the UK was the eleventh-largest goods exporter in the world and the eighth-largest goods importer. It also had the second-largest inward foreign direct investment, and the third-largest outward foreign direct investment. The UK left the European Union in 2019, but it remains the UK's largest trading partner. In 2019, the UK had a labour force of 34,280,575 people and , as of 2018, an employment rate of 78.7%. The service sector contributes around 80% of GDP with the financial services industry being significant, with London as the second-largest financial centre in the world. Britain's aerospace industry is the second-largest national aerospace industry. Its pharmaceutical industry is the tenth-largest in the world. Of the world's 500 largest companies, 26 are headquartered in the UK. The economy is boosted by North Sea oil and gas production; its reserves were estimated at 2.8 billion barrels in 2016, although it has been a net importer of oil since 2005 . The size of London's economy makes it the largest city by GDP in Europe. In the 18th century the UK was the first country to industrialise, and during the 19th century it had a dominant role in the global economy, accounting for 9.1% of the world's GDP in 1870. The Second Industrial Revolution was also taking place rapidly in the United States and the German Empire; this presented an increasing economic challenge for the UK. The costs of fighting World War I and World War II further weakened the UK's relative position. In the 21st century, the  UK has faced the challenges of the 2008 banking collapse and the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. Largest companies. This list shows the UK companies in the Fortune Global 500, which ranks firms by total revenues reported as of September 2019. Only the top five firms are included as a sample. Notable companies. This is a list of companies of the United Kingdom as well as those first established in the United Kingdom that are no longer British owned, and also including defunct UK companies. Only companies with articles in Wikipedia are included. List of companies of the United Kingdom K-Z