Home, electronics propel JD's net by 47pc

June Chen and Bloomberg

JD.com (9618) saw its net profit in the third quarter increase by more than 47 percent to 11.7 billion yuan (HK$12.57 billion) year-on-year, thanks to a rebound in growth of electronics and home appliances, and sustained momentum in general merchandise.

The e-commerce giant in China recorded more than 260 billion yuan in revenue in the period, an increase of 5.1 percent from the third quarter of 2023.

In the first nine months, JD's net profit jumped by 51 percent to 31.5 billion yuan versus last year.

The better-than-anticipated results, while off a low year-ago base, suggest an initial recovery in segments of the Chinese consumer economy such as electronics.

In the longest on-record Singles Day shopping season that took place this week, Beijing-based JD reported robust sales, though it avoided reporting actual transactions.

The number of shoppers increased by more than 20 percent and live-streaming orders rose 3.8 times compared with last year's event, though analysts said it's still too early to call a recovery.

"The e-commerce company likely ceded profit gains as it spends more to boost customer spending on its platform. Costs related to enlarged incentives for shoppers and merchants probably eroded earnings growth from July-September and led to lower operating margin," according to Catherine Lim and Trini Tan, Bloomberg's analysts.

Moreover, JD Logistics' operating income surged by more than 7 times in the third quarter compared to a year earlier, reaching 2.1 billion yuan. In the first three quarters, its income was nearly 4.5 billion yuan, compared to a loss of 325 million last year.

In other news, JD Global Sales, the firm's overseas e-commerce arm, expanded free shipping to the US and Singapore for orders over 618 and 218 yuan, respectively, in August.