Google parent Alphabet hits 2tn valuation as it announces first dividend

Google's parent company has hit a stock market value of 2tn ( 1.6tn) as investors reacted to a declaration of its first ever dividend alongside strong results on Thursday. Shares in Alphabet rose 10% in early Wall Street trading on Friday to give the tech group a stock market capitalisation – a measure of a corporation's value – of more than 2tn. Alphabet last hit that level in intraday trading in 2021, but has yet to close above that benchmark after a day's trading. Alphabet's shares rose after it posted results on Thursday that exceeded analyst's expectations. Microsoft also reported strong figures on Thursday, amid heavy investment in artificial intelligence, and investors pushed the company past the 3tn mark, a level it has already crossed this year.