Uber reports record gross bookings in March across ride hailing and food delivery
The mobility and delivery giant has seen a huge increase in demand for rides as restrictions relax and vaccine numbers jump.
Uber is seeing a boom.
How the month of March for you? Ride-hailing company Uber had a great one. The company announced Monday that last month it saw record gross bookings, which reached the highest monthly level in its nearly 12-year history.
After being hit hard by the pandemic last year and staying afloat largely thanks to its food delivery service Uber Eats, Uber saw an increase in demand for its ride-hailing service as restrictions began to lift and vaccination rollout picked up. Combined with sustained demand for takeout, the company had positive news to report in an SEC filing ahead of its first-quarter results announcement next month.
"As vaccination rates increase in the United States, we are observing that consumer demand for Mobility is recovering faster than driver availability, and consumer demand for Delivery continues to exceed courier availability," said the company in the filing.
The 9% month-on-month increase in ride-hailing requests is likely a relief for Uber, which lost billions last year due a sharp dropoff in demand at the height of the pandemic. It was the best month the company's ride-hailing segment has experienced since March 2020, when the US and much of the rest of the world first entered lockdown.
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