Amazon Is First Company to Lose $1T in Market Value

Just over four years ago, Amazon became the second US company to reach a $1 trillion valuation, weeks after Apple hit the same milestone. The e-commerce giant has now reached a more unwelcome milestone, becoming the first company in the world to lose $1 trillion in value, Bloomberg reports. Amazon's share price more than doubled during the pandemic and its valuation peaked at $1.88 trillion in July 2021, but it has fallen by around 50% this year and it is now back to where it was in late 2019. A 4.3% drop on Wednesday brought the company's market valuation to $879 billion. According to Bloomberg's data, founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos' wealth has fallen to $109 billion, down around $83 billion since the start of the year.

Tech stocks have fallen hard this year amid rising inflation, higher interest rates, and fears of a recession. Gizmodo reports that the five most valuable US tech stocks have dropped by a total of more than $4 trillion since the start of the year. Microsoft, down $889 billion from its November 2021 peak, may be the second to see its value drop by more than $1 trillion, per Bloomberg. Amazon has also been hit by a decline in e-shopping as more consumers return to retail stores. The company's share price dropped sharply last month after its third-quarter revenue and fourth-quarter projections were weaker than expected. (More Amazon stories.)