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Meituan
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Meituan, China’s biggest on-demand delivery provider, posts wider quarterly loss amid regulatory pressure

  • China’s largest on-demand services provider posted a net loss of US$832 million in the fourth quarter that was less than analysts’ consensus estimate
  • The company swung to a US$3.7 billion loss for the whole of 2021, compared with a US$737 million net profit in 2020

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Meituan, China’s largest on-demand services provider, had more than 5 million delivery couriers as of December 31, 2021. Photo: Reuters
Tracy Qu
Meituan, operator of China’s largest on-demand services platform, reported a wider net loss in the three months to December from a year ago, as revenue slowed for the third consecutive quarter amid Beijing’s pressure to lower merchant fees and boost protection for delivery couriers.
The Beijing-based company posted a net loss of 5.3 billion yuan (US$832 million) in the fourth quarter, 137.9 per cent higher than its 2.2 billion yuan loss in the same period in 2020, after it was slapped with a US$530 million antitrust fine by the government in October. Still, that was less than analysts’ consensus estimate of a 7.2 billion yuan loss for the quarter.

Revenue last quarter grew 30.6 per cent to a better-than-expected 49.5 billion yuan, up from 37.9 billion yuan a year earlier, on the back of its food delivery, new initiatives and others business segment, and in-store, hotel and travel businesses operation.

“As we entered 2022, we still faced challenges from Covid control measures and weakening consumption environment,” Meituan said in a statement on Friday.

Meituan launched its first drone delivery trial in a commercial area in Shenzhen on December 17, 2021. Photo: Handout
Meituan launched its first drone delivery trial in a commercial area in Shenzhen on December 17, 2021. Photo: Handout

“We will commit our support in promoting ‘rural revitalisation’, and will bring high quality products and services to tens of thousands of villages in China,” the company said. “In addition, we will continue to create a wide range of job opportunities while placing particular emphasis on the welfare and needs of flexible workers. Particularly, for our food delivery couriers, we will always take their rights and interests as a top priority.”

Hong Kong-listed Meituan’s shares were down 8.16 per cent to close at HK$135 on Friday. Its shares have fallen from their peak of HK$460 in mid-February last year amid a broader decline in the stock market.

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