Is Tencent Beating Alibaba?

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Is Tencent Beating Alibaba?

In the unstable world of China tech, Tencent [0700:HK], the country’s largest company, seems to be edging ahead of rival Alibaba [BABA], Bloomberg reported, following a better-than-expected earnings report. Tencent logged a 62% rise in net income, having doubled ad sales through its video accounts service; its share price was up as much as 4.8% in Hong Kong on Thursday following the results, its biggest jump in three weeks.

Microsoft Invites China-based Employees to Relocate

Microsoft [MSFT] is asking hundreds of China-based employees to consider relocating. Some 700–800 staff at the tech giant’s cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) operations in the country have been offered the chance to move to countries including the US, Ireland and Australia, according to the Wall Street Journal. Elsewhere, Microsoft’s Chief Sustainability Officer Melanie Nakagawa wrote in a report that the company will require “select scale, high-volume suppliers to use 100% carbon-free electricity by 2030”.

Nio Rolls with the Geopolitical Punches

Chinese EV brand Nio [NIO] will change its approach to global expansion, CEO William Li told reporters Thursday, describing its new philosophy as “global capability, local operation”. Nio launched its low-cost brand Onvo on Wednesday with a new L60 SUV which is some $4,000 cheaper than Tesla’s [TSLA] comparable Model Y. In the US, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Wednesday that her department will issue new rules on Chinese connected vehicles in autumn; “The national security risks are quite significant,” she said.

Roche Pops on Weightloss Trial

Shares in the Swiss drugmaker [ROG:SW] jumped by as much as 4.7% Thursday, after an early-stage trial showed that a newly acquired obesity drug candidate, the compound known as CT-388, had led to weight loss of 18.8% after 24 weeks in otherwise healthy adults with obesity. Roche bought Carmot Therapeutics, the drug’s developer, for $2.7bn in December, with a view to entering the booming weightloss market.

Dalio Doubles Down on Big Tech

Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates made some big bets on ‘magnificent seven’ stocks in Q1, the hedge fund’s 13-F filing shows. These included $800m spent on Alphabet [GOOGL] shares, more than doubling its stake in the company since the preceding quarter. Bridgewater also tripled its stake in Microsoft. Elsewhere, Dalio has told the Financial Times about his concerns related to the US economy, including the risk of a “civil war” and high debt levels.