EBay to cut 4% of its workforce amid low consumer demand worldwide

EBay Inc. is cutting about 500 employees — or 4% of its workforce — as the e-commerce company continues to face slower consumer spending after a brief pandemic boom.

The reductions are in response to the “macroeconomic situation around the world,” Chief Executive Officer Jamie Iannone said Tuesday in a statement, and are necessary to help “create long-term sustainable growth.”

EBay is the latest company to eliminate positions in response to economic conditions. Sales have declined in the past six quarters as people shifted back to spending on experiences such as traveling and dining out that they postponed during the pandemic. Analysts, on average, expect the San Jose, California-based company will report that revenue fell about 6% to $2.46 billion when it announces holiday-quarter results on Feb. 22.

The “workforce reduction may be a move to streamline operations and make room for new investment focused on elevating the platform’s capabilities and visibility,” Poonam Goyal and Abigail Gilmartin, Bloomberg Intelligence analysts, said in a note.

Amazon.com Inc., EBay’s far larger rival, has said it’s cutting 18,000 jobs and reported last week that online sales dropped 2% in the holiday quarter. Wayfair Inc., an online home-goods retailer, said last month it would eliminate 1,750 jobs, or 10% of its workforce.