Shares of Apple sank below $90 for the first time in nearly two years on Thursday, ceding the title of the worlds largest company by market valuation to Google.

With investors souring on the outlook for sales of its market-leading iPhones and iPads, and no new blockbuster consumer electronics product in its offerings, Apple shares fell 3.3% to $89.47 in morning trade on Thursday, before rebounding slightly back above the $90 threshold.

That left the company's stock off more than 14% since the beginning of the year and down one-third from the peak of $132.54 one year ago.

Thursday's fall elevated Google parent Alphabet ahead of its Silicon Valley rival as the world's largest company. At 12:00, Apple's market valuation was around $494bn against Alphabet's $498bn.

Worries were mounting over the pace of iPhone sales, the company's top earner, amid reports that consumers worldwide are generally replacing their phones less often than before.

Key Asian producers of components for Apple were also seeing their shares pummelled on the forecast for slower iPhone sales.

And analysts at UBS cut their outlook for Apple's share price on Wednesday to $115 from $120 on lower sales forecasts.

Credit: AFP