: Amazon to hold a second Prime Day in October to lure cost-conscious holiday shoppers

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Amazon.com Inc. will hold a second global sales day in October to help consumers hunt for holiday bargains early, marking the first time the e-commerce giant has held two such shopping events in a single year.

The e-tailer’s
AMZN,
-3.01%

global shopping event — Prime Early Access Sale — will take place on Oct. 11 and 12 in 15 countries , the company said Monday in a press release, adding that it would be offering “hundreds of thousands of deals.”

For its new deals event, Amazon is introducing a Top 100 list of “some of the seasons most popular and giftable items,” within electronics, fashion, home, kitchen, pets, toys and Amazon devices. The e-tailer will also provide holiday gift guides and “Toys We Love,” lists.

Amazon held its traditional Prime Day sale event in July, that saw members worldwide bought more than 300 million items over 48 hours this year, saving more than $1.7 billion, according to the company.

The decision for a second sales day comes amid signs of a slowing global economy as central banks hike interest rates to battle inflation. In Europe, the situation has been compounded by soaring costs of fuel, due to Russia’s war in Ukraine that began in February and has driven up commodity prices worldwide.

Amazon shares have tumbled 32% this year, compared to the 23% loss for the S&P 500
SPX,
-1.72%
.