Amazon has reported a rise in sales and earnings over the Christmas quarter and is to increase the cost of a subscription to its Prime service.
Amazon posted a rise in net sales of 9% to $137.4bn (Ā£101.1bn) in the quarter to December 31, 2021.
Net income doubled to $14.3bn (Ā£10.5bn) in the period, helped by a gain from an investment, but operating income fell to $3.5bn (Ā£2.6bn) from $6.9bn (Ā£5.1bn) the previous year.
Amazon said it will increase the price of a Prime membership in the US from $12.99 to $14.99 on a monthly basis, and from $119 to $139 annually ā the first rise since 2018. The change will start next month.
The price increase came as Amazon chief executive Andy Jassy flagged rising costs and continued Covid uncertainty.
He said: āAs expected over the holidays, we saw higher costs driven by labour supply shortages and inflationary pressures, and these issues persisted into the first quarter due to Omicron. Despite these short-term challenges, we continue to feel optimistic and excited about the business as we emerge from the pandemic.ā
Amazon said that it had its biggest-ever Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping weekend with clothing, beauty, home and toys among the top-selling categories.
Amazonās quarterly growth was boosted by earnings from its web services business, which were up 40% year on year.
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