Amazon received $600 million in tariff refunds and will pass some back to customers

CFO Brian Olsavsky revealed the figures during the company's quarterly earnings call with analysts. He attributed the relatively modest refund total to two factors: Amazon had moved early to build up inventory before tariffs kicked in, and the company does not hold importer-of-record status for the vast majority of products listed in its store.

"In cases where we did see an increase in costs due to tariffs, we largely absorbed these costs rather than pass them on to customers," Olsavsky said.

Amazon said it would reach out to shoppers and process refunds automatically wherever the company can establish a direct link between particular import charges and what customers paid. "Otherwise, like other large retailers, we'll utilize refunds to continue to invest in low prices for customers," Olsavsky said.

Outside sellers account for more than 60% of goods sold on Amazon's marketplace. Many of those third-party sellers who import goods from overseas were forced to raise prices due to the tariffs and have since applied for their own refunds.

Before Thursday, Amazon had stayed silent on whether it planned to pursue any refunds at all. A class action filed by consumers in Seattle federal court in May claimed shoppers deserved compensation for prices inflated by the levies, and accused the company of deliberately forgoing refunds to maintain goodwill with the Trump administration, according to CNBC.

The refunds stem from a February Supreme Court ruling that struck down the broad tariffs President Donald Trump imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, which required the government to repay duties collected from importers. The U.S. Treasury paid out $49.2 billion in customs refunds in June alone, more than double the roughly $22 billion disbursed the previous month. Combined May and June payouts accounted for roughly 42% of the estimated $166 billion in IEEPA-based duties owed back to importers, according to Reuters.

Other major retailers have taken varying approaches to the refunds. Walmart $WMT said it would prioritize using the proceeds to invest in prices, according to Bloomberg. Costco $COST indicated it intends to pass at least some of its refund money back to customers, though the retailer acknowledged that exactly how much and on what schedule remained uncertain. Apple $AAPL said Thursday its earnings per share were lifted 5%, or 11 cents, by tariff refunds in its third quarter.