The Amazon.com logo and stock price information is seen on screens at the Nasdaq Market Site in New York City, New York, U.S., Sept. 4, 2018. (Xinhua/REUTERS)

NEW YORK, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon hit one trillion U.S. dollars in market cap on Tuesday, becoming the second publicly traded U.S. company to reach the historic threshold after Apple.

Shares of Amazon rose nearly two percent to a high of 2,050.50 dollars apiece in morning trading, bringing it to reach the record valuation. The stock needed to hit a price of 2,050.27 dollars to reach the 1-trillion-dollar milestone based on its share count, according to the company's recent quarterly report in July. The stock retreated a bit after the record high and traded at a price of 2,036.04 dollars around midday.

U.S. tech giant Apple reached the trillion-dollar cap in early August after the iPhone maker posted a strong quarterly report. It took Amazon about five weeks to catch up. The two Silicon Valley giants had been racing to the trillion-dollar valuation.