Saudi Arabia’s oil company Aramco reached a $2 trillion valuation as it hit near record levels Wednesday during trading hours.
Its market cap value puts Aramco just behind Microsoft and Apple as the world’s most valuable company. It comes as crude oil prices climb to over $82 a barrel, the highest in seven years.
Demand for energy is picking up, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic’s continued toll on travel and other key gas-guzzling sectors.
Aramco is mostly owned by the government of Saudi Arabia, with just under 2% of the company publicly listed on the Saudi Tadawul stock exchange. Aramco was trading at around 37.6 riyals a share, or a few cents over $10 a share, by midday Wednesday before dipping to 37.2 riyals a share, or around $9.92 a share.
