Facebook hits $1 trillion market cap after judge rejects antitrust cases

A US judge dismissed federal and state antitrust complaints against Facebook Inc. that sought to force the social media company to sell Instagram and WhatsApp, saying the federal complaint was “legally insufficient”.

Facebook shares rose more than 4% after the ruling, pegging the Menlo Park, California-based company’s market capitalisation at over $1 trillion for the first time.

The dismissal was the first big blow to state and federal lawsuits against Big Tech firms last year seeking to rein in alleged abuses of their massive market power.

Judge James Boasberg of the US District Court for the District of Columbia said the US FTC failed to show that Facebook had monopoly power in the social-networking market but said the FTC could file a new complaint by July 29.