Most Valuable Company on the Planet Isn't American Anymore

Two years ago, Apple passed Saudi energy giant Aramco to become the world's most valuable company. But with the ongoing rout of tech stocks, Aramco has just reclaimed the symbolic title, reports the BBC. Apple is currently valued at $2.3 trillion, and Aramco at $2.4 trillion. Don't expect the trend to reverse itself anytime soon: CNBC notes that Apple stock is down about 20% since hitting a peak of $182 in early January, while Aramco is headed in the opposite direction, up 27% for the year.

It's all part of a broad shift in the market in which investors are fleeing the tech sector because it's seen as too risky. Energy stocks in particular have benefited. What's happening to the tech industry at the moment also is happening to the world of cryptocurrency, also perceived as too volatile in the current economic climate. Bitcoin is cratering, dropping below $26,000 per coin, or about 60% below November's high. Meanwhile, a so-called "stablecoin," TerraUSD, also is plunging and rattling the crypto market, per the Wall Street Journal. (More Apple stories.)