Walmart announced its third quarter financial results this morning. The discount retailer reported earnings of $1.08 per share, which was slightly better than what analysts were expecting.
Sales climbed 3.4 percent year-over-year to $113.9 billion, but this number was expected to be higher.
But there's no question that the company continues to be one of the most powerful businesses in the world.
Walmart has come a long way since Sam Waltonopened the first discount store in Rogers, Arkansas 50 years ago.
So just how big has the multinational discount retailer become?
In fiscal year 2012, Wal-Mart registered approximately $444 billion in sales, which is $20 billion more than Austria's GDP. If Walmart were a country, it would be the 26th largest economy in the world.
Walmart has more employees worldwide — 2.2 million — than the population of Houston. The mega-retailer employs 1.4 million people in the U.S. alone.
Source: Walmart Corporate & Financial Fact Sheet
If Wal-Mart was an army, it would have the second largest military in the world, behind China.
Source: Daily Finance
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