04.06.201820:31:00UTC+00Apple Shares Hit Record High as Developer Conference Kickstarts

Apple shares reached a fresh all-time high on Monday, as developers flocked to San Jose, California for WWDC, the firm's annual developer conference.

The stock rallied by as much as 1.7 percent to $193.42, driving up the tech giant's capitalization higher than $940 billion. The shares have rallied 24 percent over the last year.

All three of the world's most valuable publicly traded firms rose to records on Monday, with Amazon and Microsoft also recording new highs. The three tech firms are now worth a combined $2.5 trillion.

The firm's developer conference is attended by third-party programmers from across the world to hear the firm talk about new tools and features, as well as launch its new operating system. The conference has become increasingly important, as Apple works to build its reputation as a software and services provider, rather than just a maker of iPhones and Macs.

Apple announced a number of features and upgrades. This includes the introduction of a new operating system iOS 12, a new augmented reality toolkit in partnership with Adobe. The firm also added new features fighting tech addiction.