Chinese tech group Tencent reversed two successive quarters of revenue declines and said it was “well positioned” to benefit from the ending of the country’s zero-COVID policy, reports the Financial Times. The tech group posted quarterly revenue of RMB 145 billion ($21 billion) in the three months to December, a 0.5% increase from the same period a year earlier and in line with analysts’ forecasts. Tencent’s net profit rose 19% to RMB 29.7 billion, slightly above analysts’ estimates.
Chief executive Pony Ma struck an optimistic tone on Wednesday, saying the company was positioned to “benefit from” a “rebound in China[’s] economic growth which our users’ activity suggests is now under way.”
The company’s sales were subdued to the end of 2022 as China emerged from zero-COVID restrictions, but its fintech arm has since experienced “double-digit growth” in the first quarter of this year as consumers headed back to the shops as China reopened.