Amazon posted stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and sales, buoyed by rapid growth in its cloud computing business and steady consumer demand despite ongoing inflation pressures.
The company reported net income of $21.1 billion (€18.2 billion) for the quarter ending September 30, up from $15.3 billion (€13.2 billion) a year earlier. Revenue climbed 13% to $180.2 billion (€155.8 billion), compared with $158.9 billion (€137.4 billion) in the same period last year. The number of items sold increased by 11%.
Amazon Web Services (AWS), the company’s cloud computing arm, led the gains with 20% year-on-year growth — a sharp acceleration from 17.5% in the previous quarter. CEO Andy Jassy said AWS is “growing at a pace we haven’t seen since 2022,” crediting rising demand for artificial intelligence tools and enterprise cloud solutions.
The robust results beat Wall Street expectations and lifted investor sentiment, pushing Amazon’s stock up 13.2% in after-hours trading on Thursday. Analysts said the performance reaffirmed AWS’s role as Amazon’s key profit engine, even as other divisions faced tighter margins.
Jassy said Amazon is seeing “meaningful improvements in every corner of our business” as AI drives efficiencies in logistics, retail, and cloud operations. The company plans to expand same-day grocery delivery to more than 2,300 communities by year-end and double the number of rural areas with access to same-day or next-day delivery.
However, Amazon issued a cautious outlook for the fourth quarter, forecasting sales between $206 billion (€178 billion) and $213 billion (€184 billion). The guidance reflects concerns about consumer spending ahead of the holiday season.
The strong quarter followed a turbulent period earlier this month when an AWS outage disrupted major online services worldwide, including social media and gaming platforms.
Meanwhile, Amazon is tightening operations and investing heavily in automation. The company announced Tuesday it would cut about 14,000 corporate jobs — roughly 4% of its white-collar workforce — as part of a restructuring effort.
Jassy insisted the layoffs were “not really financially driven and not even really AI driven,” but rather a cultural realignment. “When you grow as fast as we did for several years, you end up with a lot more people, layers, and complexity,” he said.
Amazon is also testing new warehouse technologies, including a robotics system in South Carolina that integrates multiple robotic arms to streamline order processing, and an AI-driven management tool designed to reduce bottlenecks and improve safety.
Despite cost-cutting moves, Jassy said Amazon’s focus remains on long-term innovation. “We’re continuing to invest heavily in areas that matter most to customers — speed, price, and reliability,” he said.
