Despite its quarterly gross profit growth, Jumia's back-to-back losses are worrisome

Jumia, the leading e-commerce platform in Africa, has announced a 29% YoY growth in its financial report for the third quarter of 2022 released on Thursday, but its back-to-back quarterly losses are worrisome.

According to the report, the company recorded an increase in its gross profit by 29% year-over-year, with operating loss decreasing by 33% year-over-year in the third quarter, and adjusted EBITDA loss decreasing by 13% year-over-year, the lowest in 6 quarters.

This reduction in operating losses was largely driven by a decline in marketing expenses in the form of sales and advertising expenses, which decreased 31.5% from $24 million to $16.4 million year-over-year, as the e-commerce company continues to make efforts to scale towards profitability.