(Fortune) -- Verizon Communications (Charts) ranks no. 50 on FORTUNE's Global 500 this year, with $75.1 billion in revenues, up 5% from the previous year. The New York, New York-based company was ranked no. 38 on the 2005 list. Its 2005 profits were $7.4 billion, down 5.5% from a year earlier. 2005 was a banner year for most Global 500 companies.

It took $13.7 billion in revenue just to make this year's list - up from $12.4 billion last year. And profits for the 500 companies jumped 30%. Total revenues for the Global 500 in 2006 add up to $18.9 trillion, a third of the world's GDP. In the Telecommunications industry, profits were up 6% from the previous year.

The world's biggest companies in the sector are: Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corporation (Charts), ranked no. 24 on the Global 500 with $94.9 billion in revenues; and Deutsche Telekom AG (Charts), ranked no. 54 on the Global 500 with $74.1 billion in revenues; and Vodafone (Charts), ranked no. 66 on the Global 500 with $65.3 billion in revenues; and France TÈlÈcom (Charts), ranked no. 71 on the Global 500 with $60.9 billion in revenues.

The Global 500 list is an annual ranking of the world's largest corporations by revenues.

Next: Full list: 2006 Global 500 at http://money.cnn.com/global500

Plus: See Verizon Communications's Global 500 details, including financial stats and contact information.