The 2013 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard (the Scoreboard) contains economic and financial data for the world's top 2000 companies ranked by their investments in research and development (R&D). The sample contains 527 companies based in the EU and 1473 companies based elsewhere. The Scoreboard data are drawn from the latest available companies' accounts, i.e. usually the fiscal year 2012.
In this Scoreboard edition, world top R&D investors show a remarkable resilience of R&D investment growth in a period of economic uncertainty. In 2012, companies continued to increase significantly their R&D investments in a context marked by a slow-down of net sales growth and a decline in operating profits.
Trends observed show a significant variation of R&D investment and economic results across industries and sectors. This reflects persistent market uncertainties, in particular regarding the uneven potential for growth of international markets and the macroeconomic background.