Amazon said that its sales in the third quarter grew by 37 percent to $96.1 billion. They were boosted by booming online transactions during the coronavirus crisis worldwide, which prevented or discouraged shoppers from purchasing in physical stores. Excluding a $691 million favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates during the quarter, sales increased by 36 percent as compared to the third quarter of 2019. The operating income increased to $6.2 billion from $3.2 billion in the same quarter last year. The company’s net profit roughly tripled, from $2.1 billion in the third quarter of 2019 to $6.33 billion in the third quarter of 2020.
For the fourth and final quarter, which will coincide with the holiday season, the company expects sales of between $112.0 billion and $121.0 billion, which would represent an increase of between 28 percent and 38 percent as compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. Operating income is expected to reach a level between $1.0 billion and $4.5 billion, as compared to $3.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019.
