Google’s advertising business staged a stronger than expected rebound from its coronavirus slump in the latest quarter, boosting revenue and earnings of parent Alphabet above most analysts’ expectations and sending the shares 9 per cent higher in after-market trading.

Coming just days after the search group was hit with a landmark antitrust lawsuit from the US government, its earnings showed that the core search business had returned to growth after the pandemic led to its first-ever business contraction.

Sundar Pichai, chief executive, called it “a strong quarter, consistent with the broader online environment”. Google was expected to benefit from stronger advertising demand as merchants shifted more of their ad budgets online to support sales during the pandemic, though the strength of the recovery outpaced most analysts’ expectations.

Advertising revenue at Google, which accounts for virtually all of Alphabet’s business, grew 10 per cent in the three months to the end of September, after falling 8 per cent in the preceding quarter.

Search advertising recovered from the 10 per cent fall in the second quarter to edge up 6 per cent, while advertising on YouTube rebounded strongly, rising 32 per cent compared with a 6 per cent gain in the previous quarter.

Overall, Alphabet reported revenue of $46.2bn, up 14 per cent from the previous year, after a decline of 2 per cent in the second quarter. Earnings per share rose 62 per cent, to $16.40. Wall Street had been expecting revenue of $42.77bn and earnings per share of $11.18.