Amazon profits surge as company raises price of Prime membership

In the three months ending in December 2021, sales for the e-commerce giant were up 24% from a sluggish third quarter to $137.4bn. Sales are also up 9% year-over-year from the same period in 2020.

But the company is still feeling some of the effects of a battered supply chain and has increased wages to attract and retain its sprawling workforce in the tight labor market. In September, Amazon upped its average starting wage again to $18 an hour, and began including signing bonuses to entice hourly workers.

Amazon defended the cost rise in it in its earnings call, pointing out its array of premium content including Amazon original programming and the upcoming release of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. It also noted that Amazon will become the exclusive home of NFL Thursday Night Football starting in September.

Amazon remains one of the biggest winners of the past few years as consumer spending shifted to e-commerce during the pandemic. The company had its two most profitable quarters in the past two years.