Amazon’s financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, blew away all expectations, with revenue soaring 44%, to $108.5 billion, over the first quarter of 2020. Operating profit more than doubled, jumping to $8.9 billion.
Sales through the company's online stores also rose 44% in the quarter, to $36.6 billion, while sales through third-party sellers jumped 64%, to $23.7 billion. The company did suffer one negative consequence from the pandemic: sales through physical stores, which includes some bookstores, fell 16% in the period.
The company sees no immediate signs of sales slowing, predicting that, for the second quarter, revenue will increase 24%-30% over last year’s second quarter, when sales surged because of the pandemic. Despite the expected sales jump, Amazon gave is usual wide-ranging forecast for how profits may do, estimating they could decline by 22%—or rise by 38% depending on business conditions. The company said it expects to incur $1.5 billion in Covid-19 related costs.
