Covid Helps Cut Tencent’s Profits in Half

Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s profits halved and revenue barely grew in the first quarter of 2022, as ad sales plummeted, the country’s economy stumbled amid Covid-19 outbreaks and Beijing’s tech sector crackdown weighed on its business.

Net profit attributable to shareholders nosedived 51% year-on-year to 23.4 billion yuan ($3.46 billion), according to the internet titan’s Wednesday financial report. That figure included 18.5 billion yuan the company earned from selling down its stake in Southeast Asian internet company Sea Ltd.