Amazon shares plunged in after-hours trading on Tuesday as the online retail giant said net profit fell sharply in the third quarter and provided a weak outlook for the holiday period.
Shares in the compant based in Seattle, Washington, shed 12.68 percent to US$198.35 after Amazon released its earnings for the quarter that ended on Sept. 30.
Amazon said net profit declined 73 percent to US$63 million in the third quarter compared with the same quarter a year ago.
Amazon sharply increased spending in the quarter as it invested in the Kindle Fire, its rival to Apple’s iPad, digital content and infrastructure projects.
Earnings per share of US$0.14 were well below the US$0.24 per share expected by Wall Street analysts.
Revenue was up 44 percent to US$10.88 billion, slightly below the US$10.93 billion forecast by analysts.
Amazon said it expected revenue of between US$16.45 billion and US$18.65 billion in the current quarter, less than the midpoint of US$18.10 billion expected by analysts for the period which includes the Christmas holiday.
In a statement, Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos emphasized sales of the Kindle electronic book reader and orders for the new Kindle Fire tablet computer introduced last month.
Amazon unveiled three new Kindle e-readers and the Kindle Fire, its rival to Apple’s hot-selling iPad, on Sept. 28.
The Kindle Fire, which costs US$199, less than half the price of the cheapest iPad, is scheduled to ship to the US on Nov. 15.
“September 28 was the biggest order day ever for Kindle, even bigger than previous holiday peak days,” Bezos said.
“In the three weeks since launch, orders for electronic ink Kindles are double the previous launch and based on what we’re seeing with Kindle Fire pre-orders, we’re increasing capacity and building millions more than we’d already planned,” he said.
Amazon does not release actual sales figures for the Kindle.
Amazon said North American sales increased 44 percent to US$5.93 billion in the quarter compared with the same quarter last year, while international sales were also up 44 percent at US$4.94 billion.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS