16. [Cash cycle for e-commerce company] The following infor- mation was taken from Amazon's 1999--2000 annual reports Like many e-commerce retailers, Amazon com has had difficulty in generating profits and/or operating cash flows (all amounts in Smillions): Years Ended December 31 Inventory Accounts payable Cost of goods sold 1998 1999 2000 $ 30 $221 $ 171 113 463 485 1,349 2,106 Note Amazon com has no accounts receivable

a. Calculate purchases for the years 1999 and 2000.

b. Calculate the company's operating and cash cycles for the years 1999 2000

c. Describe the effect of the company's operating and cash cy- cles on it's cash from operations