Amazon’s Growth Is Slow but Good Enough

For much of its history, Amazon grew amazingly, unbelievably fast. Not so much anymore.

Amazon released on Thursday its results for the first quarter. Revenue increased 9 percent, the same as in the previous quarter.

While slow by historical standards, when sales could pop 40 percent from the previous year, the numbers looked pretty good to analysts who expected even less. Amazon shares, which have had a lousy 18 months, rose more than 10 percent in after-hours trading on Thursday before giving up those gains as reality settled in.

Revenue rose to $127.4 billion, while net income jumped to 31 cents a share against a loss of 38 cents in 2022. Analysts had expected a profit of 21 cents a share and revenue of $124.55 billion.

“From my perspective, I think there’s a fair bit to like about how our teams are delivering for customers and the results we’re starting to see,” Amazon’s chief executive, Andy Jassy, said in a call with analysts.

Best-performing sectors were advertising, which rose 21 percent, and Amazon Web Services, which rose 16 percent. But revenue at the online…