Uber posts 4Q profit as ride-hailing service bounces back

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE
AP Technology Writer

SAN RAMON, Calif. (AP) — Uber’s ride-hailing service edged closer to returning to its pre-pandemic levels during the final three months of last year. But prospects for the San Francisco-based company remain clouded by the future direction of the novel coronavirus that has plagued its business. Its fourth-quarter results Wednesday came in above the analysts’ projections. But Uber’s forecast for the current January-March period was slightly below what analysts had been hoping, suggesting that omicron variant may still may be denting the ride-hailing service. Investors focused more on the positive signs in the past quarter, helping to lift Uber’s stock by about 6% in extended trading after the numbers came out.