NEW YORK — Amazon on Wednesday reported a strong increase in profits and net sales during its fiscal first quarter, helped by surging growth in its prominent cloud computing unit.
The e-commerce and technology company said that sales in its cloud computing unit were up by 28 per cent, the fastest increase in 15 quarters.
The number surpassed Amazon Web Services’ 24 per cent growth in the fourth quarter, which followed 20 per cent growth in the third quarter.
Amazon reported earnings of US$30.3 billion, or $2.78 per share, for the three-month period ended March 31. That compared with US$17.1 billion, or US$1.59 per share, in the year-ago period.
Net sales rose 17 per cent to US$181.5 billion in the quarter, compared with US$155.7 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Analysts were expecting US$1.63 per share on sales of US$177.28 billion, according to analysts surveyed by FactSet.
Revenue from Amazon Web Services reached US$37.58 billion. Analysts were expecting US$36.6 billion, according to FactSet.
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Anne D’innocenzio, The Associated Press
