International Business: Alphabet misses on revenue as YouTube ad business slowed by Ukraine war – Gulf Digital News

International Business: Alphabet misses on revenue as YouTube ad business slowed by Ukraine war – Gulf Digital News

Google parent Alphabet Inc on Tuesday reported its first quarterly revenue miss of the pandemic after the war in Ukraine hurt YouTube ad sales, leaving investors rattled as the global economy sputters.

The world's largest provider of search and video made a fortune over the last two years as the pandemic forced more shops and people online. But outdoing those sales is proving difficult so far this year with the war, rising inflation and product shortages causing advertisers to dump marketing campaigns, according to analysts.

Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said it was too early to predict when sales slowed by the war may pick up and warned that the strengthening US dollar would hurt sales even more in the current quarter.

Alphabet shares, which were up nearly 90% over the past two years, fell about 2.5% after the results late on Tuesday. They had dropped 3.6% during the regular session.

David Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors, voiced growing concerns about the macro environment. "Alphabet has been seen as one of the most insulated companies in the advertising space relative to peers, but sometimes you can still own the best house in the worst neighbourhood," he said.

Alphabet said first-quarter sales rose