For Alphabet, the path to becoming the most valuable company in the world

(THE NEW YORK TIMES) With the close of Tuesday’s trading, it was official: Alphabet, the newly formed holding company for Google, is the most highly valued company in the world.

Coming off a strong earnings report, Alphabet dethroned another tech giant,Apple, whose market capitalization has swooned from the heights it reached last year.

Exxon Mobil, the leader earlier in the decade, has seen its own value decline along with the price of oil.