Apple briefly overtakes Microsoft as world's most valuable company

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Apple briefly overtook Microsoft as the world's most valuable company on Wednesday as its shares hit a new all-time high before retreating.

The US-based tech company's stock price hit an all-time high of $220.20 per share around 3.15 p.m. EDT (1915GMT). The company's market value stood at almost $3.38 trillion at the time.

Following the record high, however, Apple's stock price fell to $213.07 a share by the market close for a daily gain of 2.86% with a market value of $3.27 trillion, surrendering the top position to Microsoft.

Microsoft shares closed the day with a 1.94% increase, while the tech firm's market valuation stood at $3.28 trillion by the final bell.

Apple shares have been on a rally since Monday, when the company announced Apple Intelligence generative models and unveiled a partnership with OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT.

The company in addition said Tuesday that Apple Vision Pro will arrive in new countries and regions beginning June 28, after hitting US stores in February.

Customers in mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore can pre-order Apple's mixed-reality headset on June 14, while those in Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the UK can pre-order on June 28, it said in a statement.