The ten most powerful women in the world

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has beaten Theresa May to the top spot on the Forbes annual list of the world’s 100 most powerful women.

It is Merkel’s eighth consecutive year at No. 1, with the British PM at No. 2 for the second time in a row. Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is third.

“The 100 women on the list are women who are building billion-dollar brands, calling the shots in the financial markets, crisscrossing the globe to broker international agreements and provide aid to those in need,” says Forbes.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Those who dropped down the rankings include Ivanka Trump, who fell from 19th to 24st place this year.

And Hillary Clinton failed to make it onto the list for the first time since its inception in 2004.

The oldest woman featured is Queen Elizabeth II, at age 92 and in 23rd place, while the youngest is 28-year-old pop star Taylor Swift, at No. 68.

Other entertainers on the list include singer Beyonce Knowles, ranking 50th, and Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes, at 74.

Here are the top ten:

Angela Merkel, who has served as chancellor of Germany since 2005.

Theresa May, who in 2016 became the UK’s first female PM since Margaret Thatcher.

Christine Lagarde, the first woman to hold the position of managing director at the IMF.

Mary Barra, chair and chief executive of General Motors, maker of car brands including Buick, Cadillac, GMC and Chevrolet.

Abigail Johnson, chair and chief executive of Fidelity Investments, a multinational financial services corporation based in Boston.

Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has raised billions of dollars for charity.

Susan Wojcicki, chief executive of YouTube, which is now worth an estimated $90bn (£70.6bn).

Ana Botin, executive chair of banking group Santander.

Marillyn Hewson, chief executive of aerospace and defence company Lockheed Martin, where she started out as an industrial engineer more than 35 years ago.

Ginni Rometty, chair, president and chief executive of computer manufacturing company IBM.