The value of technology companies is growing. Chip manufacturer Nvidia has already surpassed the four trillion dollar mark, which is approximately 84.2 trillion crowns in conversion.
The first company with shares on the stock exchange, whose market value has reached four trillion dollars, which is roughly 84.2 trillion crowns, is the American chip manufacturer Nvidia. Other players who are setting the tone for global business include Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Google. Are you interested in how Europe and the Czech Republic itself are doing?
The most valuable company in the world according to market capitalization manufactures advanced semiconductors, which are used in the infrastructure for operating models of generative artificial intelligence (AI). Recently, Nvidia rebounded from its April lows when markets reacted negatively to the announcement of so-called reciprocal tariffs by US President Donald Trump. However, since then their value has increased by more than 73 percent. As a result, its market value has now reached four trillion dollars, approximately 84.2 trillion crowns.
Microsoft vs. Apple
The second most valuable company on the stock market is the American tech giant Microsoft with a market capitalization of 3.75 trillion dollars, which is just under 80 trillion korunas. The company, thanks to its engagement in OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, is riding on the boom of generative artificial intelligence. It is gradually integrating its technology into its tools, which, of course, continues to increase its attractiveness.
Apple also ranks among the top ten most valuable companies, whose rivalry with Microsoft dates back to the eighties. At that time, the company accused Bill Gates of stealing the “visuals and impression” of the Macintosh operating system.
The company with the logo of the bitten apple then lost a significant lawsuit to Microsoft in the early nineties, which paved the way for the Windows operating system to dominate the personal computer market for decades. In recent years, the Apple brand has certainly not been helped by the production outages of iPhones, which have occurred due to the closure of some of its factories and problems in the supply chains.
Other leading firms include Amazon, Alphabet, Saudi Aramco, Meta Platforms, Berkshire Hathaway, Broadcom, and Tesla. It's worth noting that all - except for the Saudi Arabian oil giant Saudi Aramco – are from the United States. Are you asking where Europe is?
The problem of European companies is the fact that some of them are losing their positions. While ten years ago they represented almost a quarter of the value of the hundred largest companies in the world, their current share is below ten percent. At least this is what the study PwC Global TOP 100 Companies claims. The old continent has not been able to adapt to the changing economic environment and the rise of technology giants. However, there are a few who are celebrating success. Volkswagen is an example.
Volkswagen
The Volkswagen Group, which also includes our Škoda, is globally amongst the top ten companies in terms of revenue. In the first quarter of this year, it sold 2.1 million vehicles worldwide, as reported by the Czech News Agency. This is 1.4 percent more than in the same period last year. Meanwhile, sales of the Škoda Auto brand rose by 8.2 percent to just under 240 thousand cars. Škoda also expects this year to increase the sales of its electric vehicles to more than 80 thousand. The upgraded version of the electric model Enyaq and the recently introduced smaller electric SUV Elroq should contribute to this.
ČEZ reigns in the Czech Republic
The Czech Republic also has a ranking of the most valuable companies. It is compiled by the portal Seznam Zprávy in collaboration with Delloitte. Last year, ČEZ held the top spot, its value is estimated at more than 470 billion crowns. Daniel Křetínský's and Patrik Tkáč's EPH group has over 400 billion. The lottery company Allwyn, successor of Sazka, ranked third. The entity, which is part of the financial group KKCG of the billionaire Karel Komárek, has a value exceeding 210 billion crowns. Then there is CPI of Radovan Vítek with a value of 140 billion. For arms dealer Michal Strnad and his Czechoslovak Group, it's around 100 billion. Also noteworthy is the Agrofert company of Andrej babis with a price tag of 74 billion crowns.
The company's valuation is important not only because of the value of its securities, but also at the moment when entrepreneurs are dealing with a change in ownership relations, or even the sale of a company. That is why information about who is currently the most successful is so significant.
Sources: author's text, ČTK, PWC, Wikipedia, Seznam Zprávy
