Amazon sales have fallen short of analyst forecasts for both the current quarter and the next as cautious consumers seek out cheaper products.
For the second quarter ending June 30, 2024, the ecommerce giant’s net sales rose 10% year-over-year to $148bn.
Online stores sales rose 5% in the second quarter to $55.4bn, compared with a 7% gain in the first quarter.
Sales in North America were up 9% to $90bn, while sales in international markets, which includes Europe, grew 7% year-over-year to $31.7bn.
“We did come in a little short on revenue growth in North America versus our internal estimates,” finance boss Brian Olsavsky admitted.
He said the revenue miss was driven by consumers choosing to buy cheaper products, leading to lower average selling price.
As a result, the firm expects revenue of $154.0bn to $158.5bn for the third quarter, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $158.24bn.
-
Related Story
-
Meanwhile, Amazon’s cloud business, Amazon Web Services (AWS) continued to grow, surpassing market estimates with a 19% increase in sales to $26.3bn.
The business said “AWS remains a critical driver of Amazon’s profitability”, contributing $9.3bn to its operating income.
Amazon CEO and President Andy Jassy: “We’re continuing to make progress on a number of dimensions, but perhaps none more so than the continued re acceleration in AWS growth.”
Amazon added that its 10th Prime Day, which was held last month, was its “biggest ever”, surpassing previous records in both sales volume and customer engagement.
The shopping event saw unprecedented levels of participation, with boosts in sales across various categories including electronics, home goods, and fashion.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
