Executive Summary

• This week’s note “From the Desk of Deborah Weinswig” discusses the importance of Amazon Prime Day in boosting awareness of Amazon’s fashion, beauty and grocery offerings and encouraging customers to try its private-label products.
• Amazon reported record sales for its third-annual Prime Day, commenting that “tens of millions” of Prime members bought something on Prime Day this year, up more than 50% over last year.
• The UK’s retail performance rebounded in June as total comparable retail sales rose by 1.2% year over year, up from 0.4% in May. Total retail sales rose by 2.0% in June, up from a 0.2% increase in May.
• Amazon has topped up its investment in its India business with another $260 million, in time to prepare Amazon India for the holiday shopping season, which centers on the Dussehra and Diwali festivals in the fall.