While retailers across the board suffered in 2008, Amazon.com's annual sales gained 29 percent to $19.17 billion. Yearly profit grew 36 percent to $645 million.

Amazon said that its holiday season was its "best ever." The company seems to say that every year, but the numbers offered on Thursday are making investors happy.

For the fourth quarter, which ended Dec. 31, profit grew 9 percent to $225 million, or 52 cents per share, compared with $207 million, or 48 cents, in 2007.

Shares jumped 13 percent to $56.70 in after-hours trading.

Fourth-quarter sales grew 18 percent to $6.7 billion. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, sales would have grown 24 percent, the company said.

The Seattle-based online retailer expects sales to grow between 9 percent and 19 percent in the first quarter.