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Amazon to split second HQ between New York, Virginia

<p>Amazon has officially hit the $1 trillion valuation mark.&nbsp;</p><p>On Tuesday, it became the second publicly-traded U.S. company to reach the goal. Apple&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsy.com/stories/apple-stock-value-hits-new-record-high-for-public-company/" target="_blank">crossed the $1 trillion line in August</a>.&nbsp;</p><p>The milestone comes after&nbsp;<a href="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2360353" target="_blank">Amazon reported second quarter earnings that doubled investors&#39; expectations,</a>&nbsp;thanks in part to the success of its cloud business,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/26/amazon-earnings-q2-2018.html" target="_blank">Amazon Web Services,</a>&nbsp;and advertising.</p><p>Since it was founded in 1994, CEO Jeff Bezos has taken Amazon from an online bookseller to an online retail giant that has its hands in various industries.&nbsp;&nbsp;Last year, it jumped into the grocery business by purchasing Whole Foods Market. Amazon also announced a move into health care with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsy.com/stories/amazon-to-enter-pharmacy-market-with-pillpack-acquisition/" target="_blank">acquisition of online pharmacy PillPack</a>.</p><p>The e-commerce company&#39;s success hasn&#39;t come without criticism, though. Experts have expressed concern that Amazon&#39;s hold on consumers shutters competition from other companies. It&#39;s also faced scrutiny from President Donald Trump, who claims it doesn&#39;t pay adequate taxes.</p><p>Earlier this year, Bezos hit a milestone in his own net worth. He became the richest person in history, surpassing Microsoft founder Bill Gates, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/" target="_blank">Bloomberg&#39;s billionaire index</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Additional reporting from Newsy affiliate&nbsp;<a href="http://www.cnn.com" target="_blank">CNN</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/stories/colin-kaepernick-s-nike-campaign-sparks-boycott/">Some Aren&#039;t Happy About Colin Kaepernick&#039;s Nike Campaign</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/stories/coca-cola-to-buy-costa-coffee/">Look Out Starbucks, Coca-Cola Set To Buy Global Coffee Brand</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/stories/sinclair-calls-tribune-suit-meritless-counter-sues/">Sinclair Counter-Sues Tribune Media As Failed Merger Spat Escalates</a></li></ul>
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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- A person familiar with the plans says Amazon will split its second headquarters between Long Island City in New York and Crystal City in northern Virginia.

The online retailer is expected to make an official announcement later Tuesday. The person was not authorized to speak publicly ahead of that announcement and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The decision will end an intense competition between North American cities to win Amazon and its promise of 50,000 new jobs. Some locations tried to stand out with stunts, but Amazon made clear that it really wanted incentives, like tax breaks and grants.

Amazon also had sought to be near a metropolitan area with more than a million people, among other criteria.

The company received 238 proposals before narrowing the list to 20 in January.

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