Amazon showed Thursday that despite robust holiday spending in the fourth quarter of 2022, its profits did not reflect the same level of success. Although salaries increased by 9% since the same period in 2021, resulting in a market-leading $149.2 billion, the e-commerce giant posted a dismal 3 cents per share, compared to analysts' expectations of 17 cents per share.

This result came despite promises to investors that it would cut costs. Amazon announced layoffs in November 2022, ultimately resulting in thousands of roles being cut. CEO Andy Jassy noted that their selections, value and delivery drove customer demand in the quarter - something that “exceeded expectations.”

Despite promising investments like the funding of electric vehicle company Rivian, the gamble brought Amazon’s balance sheet to a loss of $2.3 billion dollars, triple that of 2021’s $11.8 billion.