Amazon Loses US$450 Billion in Nine Days — What Happened?
Jakarta, VIVA – Shares in e-commerce and cloud computing giant Amazon underwent a prolonged correction over nine trading days. The sharp decline reached 18 per cent, wiping billions of dollars from the company’s market capitalisation.
Amazon’s market value was eroded by approximately US$450 billion, equivalent to an estimated Rp 7,616.9 trillion (at an exchange rate of Rp 16,930 per US dollar). The loss in market capitalisation occurred during trading sessions from 2 to 13 February 2026, making it the company’s worst decline in a decade.
According to CNBC International, investors engaged in profit-taking amid concerns over the company’s plans to pour enormous sums into artificial intelligence technology. The pressure was compounded by sales figures and fourth-quarter 2025 performance results released in early February 2026.
In its report, Amazon announced capital expenditure plans of US$200 billion this year — a surge of nearly 60 per cent compared with the previous year and roughly US$50 billion above Wall Street expectations.
The bulk of the spending will be allocated to AI development, including data centre construction, chip procurement, and network infrastructure.
This aggressive move has triggered investor unease. Investors are questioning whether the massive AI investment will suppress or even erode the company’s free cash flow in the short term.
Across the industry, the AI spending race is intensifying. Combined capital expenditure by Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta is projected to reach US$700 billion this year for building AI infrastructure.
Amazon chief executive Andy Jassy expressed optimism to analysts that the substantial outlays would generate commensurate returns.
Matt Garman, chief executive of Amazon Web Services (AWS), likewise argued that increased capital expenditure is the key to seizing AI opportunities in the cloud business. He said the additional investment would expand AWS’s capacity and competitiveness.
Analysts at Wedbush noted that Amazon is now in a phase of proving itself to investors, seeking to demonstrate that it can deliver satisfactory returns on the capital allocated to AI spending.