Amazon Becomes the Most Valuable American Public Company

Amid the recent turbulence in the stock market that has altered the rankings of American companies based on revenue and financial value, Amazon has surpassed Microsoft to become the most valuable public company. On Monday, January 8, Amazon's stock rose by three percent to $1,629, resulting in a financial value of $797 billion. Meanwhile, Microsoft's stock increased by less than one percent to about $106, with its financial value estimated at around $784 billion. This is the first time Amazon has reached the top of the financial value rankings. In November, Microsoft surpassed Apple and was the most valuable public company in the U.S. for several months. The main reasons for the change in the rankings of American companies' financial value are heightened concerns over the U.S.-China trade war and rising interest rates, which are expected to slow global economic growth. If such a scenario occurs, the growth of new technology companies and other industries that derive a significant portion of their revenue and sales from markets outside the U.S. will decline. Consequently, the stock values of many of these companies have decreased compared to last year. For instance, Amazon's stock value has decreased by about 21 percent compared to December 2018 when its financial value surpassed $1 trillion. At that time, Apple's financial value was even higher, but since October, Apple's stock value has decreased by about 37 percent, resulting in a loss of $400 billion in financial value. According to the French news agency, with the increase in Amazon's financial value, it has shown significant growth in recent years under the leadership of Jeff Bezos, its founder, expanding its activities from online book and music sales to other consumer goods and providing computing services and entertainment products. Amazon's revenue, which was about $74.5 billion in 2013, increased to about $178 billion in 2017, and it is projected to exceed $232 billion for 2018. For a decade, Amazon prioritized growth and expansion of its business scope over profitability, investing heavily in building warehouses, developing distribution networks, and data collection centers. In recent years, the company has also become a successful producer of entertainment products, winning several acting awards at this year's Golden Globe Awards for its television series. The article also briefly mentions various political issues in Iran, including government repression and the dangers of protests underground, but these are not the main focus of the Amazon news.