Apple tops $2T in market value, first listed US company to do so
Apple has been at the vanguard of a group of Big Tech companies that are increasingly taking over people's lives and the stock market.
Apple is the first US company to boast a market value of $2 trillion, just two years after it became the first to reach $1 trillion.
Apple shares have gained nearly 60 percent this year as the company overcame the shutdown of factories in China that produce the iPhone and the closure of its retail sales amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
Image Source: Shutterstock
The company's hugely loyal customer base trusts its products so much that they continued to buy iPhones and other devices online while stuck at home. Apple recently reported blowout earnings for the April-June quarter.
An upcoming four-for-one stock split that will make Apple's shares more affordable to more investors also sparked a rally after it was announced three weeks ago.
Apple has been at the vanguard of a group of Big Tech companies that are increasingly taking over people's lives and the stock market. Just five companies — Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, and Google's parent company Alphabet — account for nearly 23 percent of the S&P 500's entire value.
Saudi Aramco reached a market value of $2 trillion shortly after becoming a public company in December 2019.
The Saudi energy producer's shares have fallen since amid a drop in oil prices and its market value is now about $1.82 trillion.
On June 22, the iPhone-maker kicked off its 31st annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) virtually. The much-awaited conference was the company’s first online-only event due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Tim Cook and several other top leaders of Apple showed up to announce all that the tech giant has been working on and will be launching for its developers and customer. All those tweaks and updates to the operating systems for iPhones, Macs, iPads, and Apple Watches, and even a new custom silicon chip to power Macs to replace its Intel-based processors.
(Disclaimer: Additional background information has been added to this PTI copy for context.)
Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta