Amazon Prime Day set to lift US online sales to $23.8 billion, Adobe estimates
Sales from July 8 to 11 are projected to rise 28.4% compared with the same period last year, the report said. Retailers recorded online sales worth $14.2 billion during the two-day Amazon shopping event last July.
"This is equivalent to two Black Fridays," Adobe noted, adding that budget-conscious consumers are adjusting their shopping habits by using generative AI to find deals and get an early start on back-to-school purchases.
Global trade uncertainties, fueled by President Trump's unpredictable rollout of tariffs, have unsettled consumer confidence and put businesses on edge ahead of the July 9 deadline for countries to negotiate trade agreements with the United States.
E-commerce giant Amazon.com has extended its sales window to 96 hours, up from 48, as competitors such as Walmart, opens new tab and Target launch their own promotions.
Shoppers are expected to take advantage of steep discounts to 'trade up' to higher-ticket items such as electronics, sporting goods, and appliances, while opting for more affordable alternatives in categories like home and garden or groceries.
Clothing is forecast to see the deepest discounts at 24%, up from 20% last year, while discounts on electronics are expected to dip slightly to 22%, according to Adobe Analytics.
Sales of backpacks, lunchboxes, and college essentials—including headphones and computers—are also expected to increase.
The data firm expects Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) usage to increase slightly during the Prime Day event, accounting for 8% of overall online spending compared to last year's 7.6% share.
Adobe's forecast is based on an analysis of 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail e-commerce sites, covering 100 million SKUs and 18 product categories.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
US Supreme Court clears the way for Trump's plans to downsize the federal workforce
The Supreme Court on Tuesday, July 8, cleared the way for President Donald Trump's plans to downsize the federal workforce despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs. The justices overrode lower court orders that temporarily froze the cuts, which have been led by the Department of Government Efficiency . The court said in an unsigned order that no specific cuts were in front of the justices, only an executive order issued by Trump and an administration directive for agencies to undertake job reductions. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the only dissenting vote, accusing her colleagues of a "demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this President's legally dubious actions in an emergency posture." Jackson warned of enormous real-world consequences. "This executive action promises mass employee terminations, widespread cancellation of federal programs and services, and the dismantling of much of the Federal Government as Congress has created it," she wrote. The high court action continued a remarkable winning streak for Trump, who the justices have allowed to move forward with significant parts of his plan to remake the federal government. The Supreme Court's intervention so far has been on the frequent emergency appeals the Justice Department has filed objecting to lower-court rulings as improperly intruding on presidential authority. The Republican president has repeatedly said voters gave him a mandate for the work, and he tapped billionaire ally Elon Musk to lead the charge through DOGE. Musk recently left his role. Tens of thousands of federal workers have been fired, have left their jobs via deferred resignation programs or have been placed on leave. There is no official figure for the job cuts, but at least 75,000 federal employees took deferred resignation and thousands of probationary workers have already been let go. Partner service Learn French with Gymglish Thanks to a daily lesson, an original story and a personalized correction, in 15 minutes per day. Try for free In May, US District Judge Susan Illston found that Trump's administration needs congressional approval to make sizable reductions to the federal workforce. By a 2-1 vote, a panel of the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to block Illston's order, finding that the downsizing could have broader effects, including on the nation's food-safety system and health care for veterans. Illston directed numerous federal agencies to halt acting on the president's workforce executive order signed in February and a subsequent memo issued by DOGE and the Office of Personnel Management. Illston was nominated by former Democratic President Bill Clinton. 'A serious blow' The labor unions and nonprofit groups that sued over the downsizing offered the justices several examples of what would happen if it were allowed to take effect, including cuts of 40% to 50% at several agencies. Baltimore, Chicago and San Francisco were among the cities that also sued. "Today's decision has dealt a serious blow to our democracy and puts services that the American people rely on in grave jeopardy. This decision does not change the simple and clear fact that reorganizing government functions and laying off federal workers en masse haphazardly without any congressional approval is not allowed by our Constitution," the parties that sued said in a joint statement. Among the agencies affected by the order are the departments of Agriculture, Energy, Labor, the Interior, State, the Treasury and Veterans Affairs. It also applies to the National Science Foundation, Small Business Association, Social Security Administration and Environmental Protection Agency. The case now continues in Illston's court.
LeMonde
2 hours ago
- LeMonde
Trump threatens to set 200% tariff on pharmaceuticals, 50% on copper
President Donald Trump said Tuesday, July 8, that he would not extend an August 1 deadline for higher US tariffs to take effect on dozens of economies, while announcing plans for a 50% duty on copper imports. The copper levy would come after a probe into imports of the metal, broadening a slate of sector-specific tariffs Trump has imposed since returning to the White House. "Today we're doing copper," he told a cabinet meeting Tuesday. "I believe the tariff on copper, we're going to make it 50%." Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC shortly afterward that the rate will likely be implemented at the end of July or on August 1. Trump also said Washington would soon make an announcement on pharmaceuticals, but officials would allow manufacturers time to relocate their operations into the country. "We're going to give people about a year, a year and a half to come in, and after that, they're going to be tariffed," he said. "They're going to be tariffed at a very, very high rate, like 200%." Apart from copper and pharmaceuticals, Trump has ordered probes into imports of lumber, semiconductors and critical minerals that could lead to further levies. Lutnick told CNBC that US studies on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors would be completed by the end of the month, with Trump to set policies thereafter. Beyond tariffs impacting sectors, Trump separately slapped a sweeping 10% tariff on goods from almost all trading partners in April. These would have swiftly risen to steeper levels for dozens of economies including the European Union and Japan, but Trump paused their implementation until July 9. The president this week again delayed their reimposition, pushing it to August 1 while insisting there would be no further delay. 'No extensions' "No extensions will be granted," Trump posted on Truth Social. "There will be no change." The clarification came after Trump told reporters Monday night that the August 1 deadline was "firm, but not 100% firm." In a push for further trade deals, Trump also sent letters to more than a dozen partners on Monday, including key US allies Japan and South Korea. Products from both countries would be hit with 25% duties, Trump wrote in near-identical documents to leaders in Tokyo and Seoul. Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Africa and Malaysia were among other countries facing duties between 25% and 40%. Most countries receiving the letters so far saw US tariffs at similar or unchanged rates from those threatened in April, although some like Laos and Cambodia received notably lower levels. In his messages to foreign leaders, Trump warned of further escalation if there was retaliation against his levies. Lutnick said 15 to 20 more letters could go out in the next two days.
Fashion Network
5 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Swiss watch exports decline amid US tariff uncertainty
Swiss watch sellers in Lucerne have endured a tough three months since U.S. President Donald Trump piled pressure on the luxury business with the threat of hefty tariffs, reducing interest from tourists who flock to the city in part to shop for watches. Reuters spoke with over a dozen industry workers in the watch-selling hub, including shop managers and salespeople, who said tariff uncertainty has weighed on a sector that exported watches worth 26 billion Swiss francs ($32.79 billion) in 2024. The business is already coping with weak Chinese demand, while in Switzerland, a franc supercharged by U.S. trade uncertainty has made the watches more expensive for foreign tourists. Switzerland, which relies heavily on trade, was stunned when Trump announced in April that he would impose a 31% tariff on the country, significantly higher than the 20% rate proposed for the European Union. "That obviously really put the brakes on," said Ken May, boutique manager at a Hublot store. Trump subsequently suspended the tariffs for 90 days, maintaining a 10% duty, and later extended his deadline until August 1. That sparked a rush by watchmakers to move their products to the U.S. ahead of the tariffs, causing Swiss exports to yo-yo up and down. The industry is on track to log its lowest export volumes for wristwatches since the pandemic in 2020, according to data from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH). "We have to open other markets," Yves Bugmann, FH president, said. "We have to look for other opportunities." Unit exports were down nearly 5% in the January–May period year-over-year, though marginally up in value terms. This summer, there are noticeably fewer tourists packing Lucerne's main watch-selling street. Those who come are more careful with their money, salespeople said. Thousands of watches glint at shoppers in Lucerne's Grendelstrasse, which boasts stores from Rolex to Patek Philippe. Watches in these shops typically cost from several hundred francs to more than 500,000 francs. At Patek Philippe, which sells watches online for nearly 3.8 million francs, customers take an elevator to an upstairs boutique. Here, a watchmaker wearing a white lab coat delivers customized timepieces on a tray to clients. "Everything is just a bit slower than last year," said Michael Haas, boutique manager of a Breitling store in Lucerne. "We're in a luxury business, and as a rule, that's where people save first when the going gets tougher."
