Trading Day – Tencent sees its first-ever revenue decline and Walmart shows revenue growth.

Chinese tech giant Tencent saw its first-ever revenue decline to 134.03 billion Yuan for the quarter, down 3% from last year.

Walmart shares rose 5% due to earnings beat and revenue growth of 8.4% to $152.9 billion.

Here is the biggest news of the day.

• Chinese tech giant Tencent saw its first-ever revenue decline due to a gaming crackdown and Covid lockdowns. The company reported quarterly revenue of 134.03 billion Yuan, down 3% from last year. Net income dropped by an astounding 56% to 18.62 billion Yuan, far below analyst estimates of 25.28 billion Yuan. Tencent slashed 5000 jobs amounting to 5% of its workforce.
• Walmart shares rose 5% due to earnings beat after a tough previous quarter. Revenue grew by 8.4% to $152.9 billion. The company warned that this was partly driven by inflation and that shoppers were buying less high-margin discretionary items. Despite this, earnings per share still beat expectations of $1.62, coming in at $1.77. Net income rose from $4.28 billion last year to $5.15 billion.
• Curro reports a substantial increase in earnings per share from R0.22 to R0.28, a rise of 27%. The company’s half-year results also showed an increase in revenue of 15% to just over R2 billion and a 7% increase in learners to 70 500.
• Renergen chooses a new external auditor. The company concluded their tender process and proposed the appointment of BDO South Africa, with Jacques Barradas as the designated audit partner. Renergen management stated that they believe they will benefit from BDO’s substantial international footprint and experience. Renergen will submit the change for shareholder approval at their 2023 annual general meeting.
• Grindrod expects earnings to turn from a loss to a profit. The company released a trading statement for its half-year results, with earnings per share (EPS) expected to go from -R0.63 to around R0.58.
• The United States and Taiwan have agreed to start formal trade talks under a new initiative. Taiwan’s top trade negotiator John Deng said one topic would be China’s economic coercion, which blocked trade with countries it is in dispute with. This includes Lithuania, which allowed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy in its capital. China has said it “firmly” opposes the new Taiwan-U.S. trade initiative.
• UK inflation rose 10.1% to a 40-year high, led by increased food prices. Core inflation also hit a record high of 6.2%.