A news anchor left his on-screen colleague cringing when he claimed that Amazon has become the world's biggest retailer because it sells sex toys.

Amazon recently overtook Walmart to become the highest-valued retailer on the stock market, after it enjoyed better-than-expected quarterly results.

North Nevada’s KTVN Channel 2 News was among outlets across the world to run a bulletin on the online giant’s impressive performance.

However, the otherwise unremarkable segment took a bizarre turn when an anchor cut in with a conspiracy theory.

“You know why [Amazon is successful]? Because they sell sex toys and Walmart can’t or won’t,” he said as his colleague’s eyes widened in embarrassment.

Without any encouragement, he continued to explain that his friend who works in a warehouse told they sell “a ton of them.”

“They’re trying to eat breakfast!” his exacerbated co-anchor replied.

The Independent contacted Amazon to ask how much the company makes by selling sex toys, but a spokesman said the firm does not release such information.

The Anchorman-esque incident comes after a Fox News presenter suggested that shark attacks could be prevented by clearing the creatures from the sea.

“You would think that they’d have a way of clearing the waters,” said Fox and Friends presenter Brian Kilmeade.