Amazon’s annual Prime Day deals extravaganza will be extended this year to run over a 48-hour period for the first time.

This year’s Prime Day will be on July 15 and 16. The online giant has already begun to reveal special offers and promises “epic deals across TVs, smart home, kitchen, grocery, toys, fashion, furniture, everyday essentials and more”.

Globally Amazon will offer members of its Prime subscription service more than a million deals and there will be limited offers for the first time.

Amazon’s worldwide consumer chief executive Jeff Wilke said: “Our vision is that Prime Day should be the absolute best time to be a member – when you can enjoy shopping, savings, entertainment and some of the best deals Prime members have ever seen.”

The etailer will cut prices on Amazon devices including its voice service Alexa. There will also be offers on exclusive content from Amazon Music and Prime Video.

From next Monday until July 18, Prime members can rent or buy blockbuster movies and get up to 50% off.

This year Amazon is also introducing ‘lightning deals’ offered in limited quantities, encouraging shoppers to check frequently to see what is on offer.

The promotion, which typically prompts other retailers to launch their own promotions in response, comes amid tough trading conditions that have already led to widespread discounting.

Prime Day will run this year in the UK, US, Spain, Singapore, Netherlands, Mexico, Luxembourg, Japan, Italy, India, Germany, France, China, Canada, Belgium, Austria, Australia and the United Arab Emirates.