(Reuters) – MercadoLibre Inc posted a 67% increase in quarterly revenue on Thursday, as the South American e-commerce giant benefited from an increase in online shopping during the COVID-19 crisis.
The Argentinian company has taken advantage of the pandemic-induced boom in e-commerce and online payments in Latin America by stepping up investments in its logistics business.
It also expanded its fintech services and increased its warehouse network in Mexico to avoid competition from companies such as Amazon.com Inc and local brand Magazine Luiza.
MercadoLibre’s gross merchandise volume, a figure widely observed for the performance of the e-commerce industry, increased 23.9% to $ 7.31 billion in the third quarter.
The company, present in 18 countries including Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, recorded an increase of more than 3% of active users to 78.7 million.
“We are entering a process of maturing our base in which the main objective is to retain customers, by encouraging them to carry out more transactions that generate income,” said Andre Chaves, vice president of strategy, of the business development and investor relations of MercadoLibre.
He said the company is expected to have comparative advantages due to its efforts to boost the logistics operation, giving it better ability to control costs in an inflationary environment.
MercadoLibre’s revenue grew 74% in Brazil and 94% in Mexico, while activity in Argentina grew by 38%.
Overall, net sales were $ 1.86 billion for the quarter ended Sept. 30, according to analyst estimates, according to Refinitiv.
Net income reached $ 95.23 million, or $ 1.92 per share, from $ 15.04 million, or 28 cents per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru and Aluisio Alves; Editing by Aditya Soni)
