Rising prices and fears of a recession have not yet harmed the world’s largest online retailer. Amazon grows sales and lets operating profit down far less than expected. That’s good for the stock market.
The world’s largest online retailer, Amazon, significantly increased sales in the second quarter despite high inflation and fears of a recession. Revenues increased year-on-year by 7 percent to $121.2 billion (119 billion euros), as the group announced after the US stock market closed. Although operating profit fell from $7.7 billion to $3.3 billion, it exceeded experts’ expectations.
Bottom line, Amazon posted a net loss of $2.0 billion. The reason, however, was that a stake in the electric car manufacturer Rivian was devalued by $3.9 billion.
Despite persistent inflationary pressures in gas, energy and transportation, Amazon is making progress in controlling costs, CEO Andy Jassy said. In particular, productivity in the warehouse and delivery network has been improved. Nevertheless, operating expenses increased by around 12 percent to $ 117.9 billion compared to the previous year.
Nevertheless, the figures were well received on the financial market, and the share rose by more than 10 percent after trading. Investors were particularly pleased with the outlook for the current quarter.
Amazon expects revenues of between $125 billion and $130 billion, driven by higher prices for its Prime membership program. Experts expect 126.4 billion here.
