SAN FRANCISCO • Apple and Facebook on Wednesday delivered stunning gains in profits and revenues over the past quarter, in the latest sign that Big Tech is delivering for pandemic-hit consumers around the world.
Blowout quarterly updates from the two Silicon Valley giants highlighted how consumers increasingly relied on social media, digital services and gadgetry as they hunkered down for the global health crisis.
Apple said profit in the holiday period rose 29 per cent from a year ago to US$28.7 billion (S$38.2 billion), while revenues grew 21 per cent to US$111.4 billion, with international sales accounting for nearly two-thirds of sales.
Sales topped the US$100 billion mark for the first time as Apple won over pandemic-hit consumers with new gadgets and services, reporting solid gains in sales of iPhones, wearables and digital content.
"We're gratified by the enthusiastic customer response to the unmatched line of cutting-edge products that we delivered across a historic holiday season," chief executive Tim Cook said.
The news was similar at Facebook, which saw its global user base increase in a world roiled by the coronavirus outbreak.
Facebook reported a profit of US$11.2 billion on revenue of US$28 billion, increases of 53 per cent and 33 per cent respectively when compared with the same period the prior year.
"We had a strong end to the year as people and businesses continued to use our services during these challenging times," said Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg.
Facebook said its core social network had some 2.8 billion users at the end of last month while 3.3 billion people used at least one of its "family" of apps including Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger.
The Silicon Valley colossus noted in the release that it faces "significant uncertainty" in the coming year, citing new regulations that could limit how it delivers targeted advertising.
Facebook takes in the bulk of its revenue from advertising, and said that it benefited as the pandemic accelerated a shift to online commerce, particularly for products as opposed to services such as booking travel.
"Looking forward, a moderation or reversal in one or both of these trends could serve as a headwind to our advertising revenue growth," Facebook said in the release.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
