Amazon has hit a $1tn market capitalisation, capping an extraordinary surge that has seen the ecommerce group’s stock more than double in 12 months.
While Apple was first to $1tn last month, Amazon's rise is record-breaking in its own right. The iPhone maker's relatively steady climb contrasts with Amazon’s vertiginous recent rally, adding some $520bn in equity value in the last year alone. That increase is itself as large as the market capitalisations of Berkshire Hathaway and Facebook, respectively the world's fifth and sixth most valuable public companies.
Amazon’s share price has accelerated as it has shown Wall Street that it is no longer afraid to turn a serious profit, following July’s delivery of its first quarterly net income above $2bn.