Seattle (dpa) - Amazon has announced plans to close its Kindle e-book store in China next year, making it the latest US technology company to shrink its presence in the world's second-largest economy.

The company has already stopped supplying Kindle e-readers to local retailers, and plans to permanently close its e-book store in the country on June 30, 2023.

Amazon said that Kindle users in China will be able to download pre-purchased e-books until June 30, 2024, and read them indefinitely after that.

Amazon confirmed that it will continue to provide warranty service and other support for Kindle e-readers.

"Amazon's long-term commitment to development in China will not change," the company said in a post on Chinese microblogging site Weibo, adding: "We have built an extensive business base in China and will continue to innovate and invest."

It is noteworthy that Amazon is not the only American company that has reduced its operations in China, as other giant American technology companies such as Airbnb, Linkedin and Yahoo provide limited services or exited the country entirely due to increasing competition and strict censorship.