The world’s largest online auction site, EBay, is celebrating record results.
The firm tripled its profits to US$87m in the three months to December, surpassing analyst expectations.
An aggressive marketing campaign that promoted EBay as a mainstream holiday shopping site contributed to the accelerated growth, according to the firm’s chief executive, Meg Whitman.
But there has been negative publicity surrounding fake EBay sites being used to steal credit card identities. It is hard to assess whether these security concerns have affected customer confidence in any way.
EBay is now forecasting revenues of up to US$1.9bn during in 2003, US$70m higher than the previous estimate. EBay’s stock has risen 22pc over the last year, far outperforming its internet peers.
By Lisa Deeney
