Google is missing out on the Covid e-commerce revolution

Google has struggled to parlay its online search dominance into a meaningful e-commerce business. — Gabby Jones/Bloomberg

The Covid-19 pandemic is fueling an e-commerce boom as shuttered businesses move online – but Google isn’t benefiting in the way its big tech rivals are.

Google advertising sales fell 8% in the second quarter, causing overall revenue at parent Alphabet Inc to shrink for the first time. The company’s main digital ad rival Facebook Inc saw sales jump 11%, while Amazon.com Inc revenue soared 40%.