PetroChina became the first public company to reach a $1 trillion valuation during intraday trading in 2007. Its Shanghai listing surged on the first day of trading, briefly giving the oil producer a market capitalization above that level.
PetroChina is the publicly traded arm of China National Petroleum Corporation, one of China’s major state-owned energy groups. The company was established in 1999 and is involved in exploration, production, refining, chemicals, marketing, and natural gas.
The 2007 milestone was unusually brief. PetroChina’s share price later fell, and its valuation did not remain above $1 trillion. This illustrates why reports about “the most valuable company” can differ depending on whether they use an intraday price, a closing price, or a particular share class.
PetroChina’s event is also separate from later trillion-dollar milestones reached by Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and other technology companies. Those later achievements occurred in different markets and periods.