Tencent registered gains across most business units in Q3, with domestic gaming, its largest segment, returning to growth, and total gaming sales hitting CNY46 billion ($6.3 billion).

In its earnings release, chair and CEO Pony Ma highlighted improved margins due to strong uptake of higher-margin services like video accounts, with total views climbing more than 50 per cent, along with service fees from mini games.

Net profit attributable to equity holders fell 9 per cent year-on-year to CNY36.2 billion, attributed to higher spending on content and a one-off gain in the same period in 2022.

Total revenue grew 10 per cent to CNY154.6 billion.

Domestic games sales rose 5 per cent to CNY32.7 billion, reversing a prolonged decline prompted by government restrictions.

International games revenue increased 14 per cent to CNY13.3 billion, helped by forex movements. Without the currency impact, growth was 7 per cent. 

The company revealed it has a strong pipeline of games in development.

Online advertising was its fastest growing division, with sales up 20 per cent to CNY25.7 billion.

Social networks sales were flat at CNY29.7 billion, while fintech and business services grew 16 per cent to CNY52 billion.

Combined monthly active users (MAUs) of messaging service WeChat and Chinese version Weixin increased 2 per cent to 1.3 billion.

QQ mobile messaging platform MAUs fell 3 per cent to 558 million.

R&D spending increased 9 per cent to CNY16.5 billion and total capex 237 per cent to CNY8 billion.