*By Mike Teich*
Amazon shares jumped nearly 4 percent Friday after the e-commerce juggernaut delivered blockbuster earnings results on Thursday.
The tech giant impressed investors by delivering operating profit of $1.9 billion. Amazon's blockbuster numbers reflected its success in retail sales and growth in its cloud services business, said Michael Pachter, an analyst from Wedbush Securities.
Amazon also announced that it would be raising its Prime membership fee by $20, up to $119 a year. Pachter said the "odds are less than 1 percent that there is a decline in membership" as a result of the price hike.
Pachter compared Amazon Prime's cost to Netflix, noting that Prime was priced below Amazon's video-streaming rival and offers content that is "75 percent as good."
The Federal Trade Commission has sued to block Microsoft from completing its deal to buy video game company Activision Blizzard, the latest antitrust challenge to the proposed merger but one that could hasten its conclusion.
Child care costs have risen dramatically, especially since the pandemic. Dawn Allcot, parenting expert with Money Crashers, joined Cheddar News to provide tips for parents on how they can save on child care expenses.
Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist with Invesco, joined Cheddar News to discuss a new week in trading as stocks closed near session highs, as the S&P and Nasdaq traded at their highest since April last year.
