Amazon beats Q3 earnings estimates, revenue up 37 percent

Amazon beat earnings estimates on Thursday - despite the quarter this year not including its hugely profitable Prime Day - as it continues to prosper from the Covid-19 pandemic and its role in accelerating the shift of consumers to online.

The US retail giant’s sales for the second quarter ended 30 September increased 37 percent to 96.1 billion dollars, well above analysts’ estimates of around 92.7 billion dollars. The company’s net income increased to 6.3 billion dollars in the third quarter, compared to 2.1 billion dollars last year.

These figures don’t include Amazon’s hugely popular Prime Day, which was moved this year to October instead of its usual slot in July due to Covid-19.

Looking ahead, the retailer expects fourth-quarter revenue to fall between 112 and 121 billion dollars - a growth of between 28 percent and 38 percent compared with Q4 2019.

It also warned of a potential 4 billion dollar hit from costs related to Covid-19 in Q4.

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