Amazon Q3 sales leap 37% as it prepares for "unprecedented" Christmas season

Amazon has reported Q3 net sales of $96.1bn (up 37%) and an operating income of $6.2bn (2019: $3.2bn) as the global online giant gears up for an "unprecedented" Christmas shopping season which is expected to be the most digital ever.

Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos used the announcement to underscore the global online retail giant's commitment to creating jobs and introducing better pay during the COVID-19 crisis, pointing out at around the world Amazon has created 400,000 jobs this year alone. In the UK, 10,000 new jobs have been created taking its workforce here to 40,000.

Bezos called on other large employers to follow its lead in offering better pay. “Two years ago, we increased Amazon’s minimum wage to $15 for all full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal employees across the US. and challenged other large employers to do the same. Best Buy and Target have stepped up, and we hope other large employers will also make the jump to $15. Now would be a great time,” he said.

“Offering jobs with industry-leading pay and great healthcare, including to entry-level and front-line employees, is even more meaningful in a time like this, and we’re proud to have created over 400,000 jobs this year alone. We’re seeing more customers than ever shopping early for their holiday gifts, which is just one of the signs that this is going to be an unprecedented holiday season. Big thank you to our employees and selling partners around the world who’ve been busy getting ready to deliver for customers this holiday.”

With Amazon fulfilment centres braced for soaring demand as shoppers steer clear of physical retail stores the company has continued to ramp up its in-house COVID-19 testing programme to keep front-line employees safe, with capacity set to reach 50,000 tests a day across 650 sites by November.

Earlier this week, Amazon launched a new programme which seeks to help shoppers identify and buy more sustainable products in the lead up to Christmas and beyond. Launched in the UK, as well as France, Germany, Italy and Spain, the Climate Pledge Friendly initiative will see more than 40,000 products badged up to signify that they meet one or more of 19 different global sustainability certifications.