Executive Summary

• This week’s note “From the Desk of Deborah Weinswig” takes a look at Amazon’s fourth-quarter and full-year earnings results, including the company’s currency-neutral sales by country and third parties’ contributions to total unit sales.
• eMarketer expects total retail sales to grow by 3.7% in 2018, to about $5.3 trillion in the US, with the e-commerce channel gaining 16%, to reach $526.09 billion in sales. Growth in e-commerce should bring its share of total US retail sales to 10% for the first time, according to the company.
• British grocer Morrisons is set to launch its Nutmeg own-brand clothing range online for the first time. Beginning in September, shoppers will be able to buy Nutmeg clothing through Morrisons’ website, on mobile devices and in-store through click-and-collect.
• Swedish fashion retailer H&M announced that it will launch a new online marketplace for discounted fashion and lifestyle products in 2018. The site, called Afound, will feature collections for men and women from external brands as well as from H&M’s portfolio.