Amazon’s market capitalization briefly exceeded $1 trillion in intraday trading in September 2018, after Apple.
Amazon crossed the $1 trillion threshold on September 4, 2018, becoming the second U.S. company to do so after Apple. The milestone occurred when Amazon shares rose enough for the value of its outstanding shares to pass the benchmark during the trading session.
The company’s market value reflected a business far broader than its original online bookstore. Amazon had expanded into general e-commerce, logistics, digital media, devices, advertising, and Amazon Web Services. AWS became especially important because cloud computing generated a significant share of the company’s operating profit.
A frequent mistake is to describe Amazon as the first company ever to reach $1 trillion. PetroChina briefly touched that level in 2007, while Apple was the first U.S. company to cross it in 2018. Amazon’s milestone was also intraday, meaning its closing market capitalization could be lower than the threshold.