Steven Deare
(Australian Associated Press)
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, surpassed $US1 trillion in value on the stock market last week.
Alphabet joins a select group of businesses to notch the trillion dollar figure.
We have compiled a list of the world’s most valuable businesses, based on stock market valuations.
While there are some household names in the list, others might surprise you.
1. Saudi Arabian Oil Company
$US6 trillion
Also known as Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Arabian Oil Company produces chemicals and energy for industry across the world.
The Saudi government owns the business, which has considerable shareholdings in energy businesses in other nations.
The business trades on the Tadawul stock exchange of Saudi Arabia.
2. Apple
$US1.3 trillion
Co-founder Steve Jobs may be gone, but Apple’s record of innovation means it has a great reputation with investors.
The iPhone, iPod and Macintosh computers are just part of a legacy of products that won over the world.
CEO Tim Cook this week labelled augmented reality as “the next big thing”.
3. Microsoft
$US1.27 trillion
Bill Gates’ technology empire may not be as trendy as Apple and Google, but it still runs most computers and electronics across the world.
Mr Gates has long since stepped down from the day-to-day running of the business, but it continues to dominate the market.
Microsoft is investing in new technologies to make sure it stays ahead of its rivals.
4. Alphabet
$US1.02 trillion
Google’s parent company was created in 2015 as the business increasingly explored new technologies.
What began as a website has grown to a megabucks operation including search, advertising, YouTube and Android.
Founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page in December announced plans to step down, and appointed Sundar Pichai as CEO.
5. Amazon
$US924 billion
What can’t you buy on Amazon these days?
Jeff Bezos founded the web shopping giant in 1994, which has claimed many sales from what may otherwise have gone to traditional retailers.
The Amazon business has since expanded to cloud computing, audiobooks and many others.
(List based on publicly-traded companies and data at time of publication)
