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![TMCNet: AMAZON'S Pounds 13BN IN 3 MONTHS.. ; ..but how much tax will they pay on UK profits? [Edition 2] [Mirror (UK)]](http://images.tmcnet.com/siteart/invisible.gif)
AMAZON'S Pounds 13BN IN 3 MONTHS.. ; ..but how much tax will they pay on UK profits? [Edition 2] [Mirror (UK)]
(Mirror (UK) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) AMAZON raked in more than Pounds 13billion in the run-up to Christmas which will reignite the controversy over its dubious tax affairs.
The takings of the world's biggest online retailer, which work out at an astonishing Pounds 498 every second, rocketed by 22% in the final three months of the year.
The haul took Amazon's annual sales to nearly Pounds 40billion.
Critics of the US firm have been angered because it has paid just Pounds 2.3million in corporation tax in the UK over the past three years - despite Pounds 7.1billion in sales here.
Amazon, run by Jeff Bezos, has faced questions over its decision to transfer ownership of its British arm to tax lax Luxembourg.
In order to carry out the tax dodge, the UK subsidiary, which employs 2,265 people, was reclassed as only being for "order fulfillment".
Rivals say Amazon's tactics make it hard for British-based companies to compete on a level playing field.
While the online giant flourished over Christmas, competitors such as HMV, Jessops and Blockbuster have gone into administration, with thousands of job losses.
Amazon's net profits for the three months to the end of December were Pounds 61.5million, down from Pounds 112million for the same period in 2011. But using a different measure of profits - operating income - they soared 56% to Pounds 257million in the last quarter.
For the second year running Amazon's Kindle tablet was its best- selling product.
The firm revealed that sales of ebooks rocketed by 70% last year. Sales of physical books suffered the lowest sales in Amazon's 17 years but they still rose by 5%.
Mr Bezos said: "We're now seeing the transition that we've been expecting."
More than Pounds 5.7billion of Amazon's fourth quarter sales - and Pounds 16.6billion for the whole of 2012 - came from its international division, which includes the UK.
Andy Street, the boss of department chain John Lewis, has called on the Government to examine how foreign multi-national companies pay tax.
Speaking in November, he said: "If you are domiciled in a tax haven you can outinvest us and ultimately out-trade us. It is an issue that needs to be looked at."
Pounds 498 per second
How much Amazon is earning worldwide.. that's Pounds 29,880 a minute and Pounds 1.8million an hour
(c) 2013 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved.
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