(Editor: Leona) 

In spite of a net sales gain of 19.5 percent to $89 billion, Amazon.com posted a net loss of $241 million for its fiscal year ending on Dec. 31, as opposed to net income of $274 million for the prior fiscal year.

Increased operating expenses offset the sales increase for the year. In dollars, operating expenses were up 33.5 percent, and as a percentage of sales, operating expenses jumped 305 basis points to 29.3 percent. Costs of fulfillment, marketing, technology and content, and general and administrative expenses all posted significant gains in the fiscal year.

For the fourth quarter, the Internet retailer reported net income of $241 million, down 10.5 percent from last year’s fourth quarter. Net sales climbed 14.7 percent to $29.3 billion.

Operating expenses finished the quarter up 28.6 percent in dollars and 299 basis points as a percentage of sales to 27.5 percent. Gross margin picked up 302 basis points to 29.5 percent.

For the first quarter of the new fiscal year, Amazon said it expected net sales to total between $20.9 billion and $22.9 billion, or 6 to 16 percent ahead of the 2014 first quarter.