Loss at Shopee owner widens in first quarter

Singapore’s Sea Ltd yesterday posted a wider quarterly loss as its revenue growth slowed, underscoring how online gaming and shopping are retreating from pandemic-era heights.

Its net loss in the first three months widened to $579.8 million from $422.7 million a year earlier, according to a statement. Total revenue climbed 64% to $2.9 billion, the slowest pace of growth in more than four years.

The Shopee owner revised its fullyear outlook for e-commerce sales, its main source of revenue, to $8.5 billion to $9.1 billion from its previous guidance of $8.9 billion to $9.1 billion.

The company said in March that it expected its gaming arm Garena to post $2.9 billion to $3.1 billion in bookings in 2022, set to be its first decline ever.

The results showcase how consumers emerging from prolonged lockdowns are cutting back on online entertainment and purchases, especially with the war in Ukraine and rising interest rates clouding the global economic outlook.

The pandemic triggered a rally in online shopping and gaming shares as consumers spent more time and money online, helping Sea’s become Southeast

Asia’s most valuable company.

But the broader tech sell-off, the shutdown of its e-commerce operation in India and disappointing earnings have wiped 81% off its value since a peak in October.

Separately yesterday, JD.com Inc logged better-than-expected 18% revenue growth, after China’s secondlargest e-commerce operator grew market share to cushion the blow from Covid lockdowns across the country’s biggest cities.

Sales climbed to 239.7 billion yuan ($35.6 billion) in January-March, beating the 236.7 billion yuan average of analyst forecasts. It reported a net loss of three billion yuan.

JD and larger rival Alibaba Group Holding Ltd are grappling with the economic fallout from the coronavirusrelated lockdowns that have snarled logistics to cities such as Shanghai.

Heavily reliant on domestic sales, JD has been expanding brand offerings to tempt shoppers.

Billionaire Richard Liu’s online shopping empire has largely avoided a direct hit from Beijing’s crackdown on China’s biggest tech companies.