Apple Is No Longer the World’s Most Valuable Company.. Its now Saudi Aramco

Oil is emerging as mightier than tech amid the turbulence that has defined financial markets the past few months. Saudi Aramco, the state-backed producer, has toppled Apple , the maker of iPhones and Mac computers, off its top spot as the world’s most valuable company. The oil giant rose to a near-record high Wednesday with a market capitalization of $2.4 trillion, pushing it ahead of Apple , which fell more than 5% to just below that level. Apple AAPL –5.18% (ticker: AAPL) shares have declined almost 20% this year, while Aramco has gained 28%. Saudi Aramco (2222.SA) last surpassed the value of Apple in 2020. The company with the monopoly on extracting crude from Saudi Arabia, home to the world’s second-biggest reserves, has benefited from the surge in oil prices since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. That’s also helped shares of U.S. producers Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX) and Occidental Petroleum (OXY). Meanwhile, Apple has lost ground as faster inflation forced the Federal Reserve into action. Rising interest rates have battered technology stocks, dragging the Nasdaq down 25% in 2022 so far.Brent crude, the international standard, traded down 1.9% on Thursday at $105.49 on concerns that an economic slowdown will curb fuel demand. But it is up more than 50% from a year ago. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, was down 2% at $103.45.