Baidu, which runs the largest search engine on the mainland, yesterday provided a better than expected fourth-quarter revenue guidance despite concerns over a slowing economy.
Sales were expected to grow 80 to 85 per cent this quarter to 1.025 billion yuan (HK$1.19 billion) and 1.055 billion yuan, it said. That was higher than most analysts had expected, said Jason Brueschke, head of Asia internet and media research at Citigroup.
Baidu reported a 347.86 million yuan profit for the third quarter, almost doubling the 181.73 million yuan a year earlier. Sales rose 85 per cent to 919.13 million yuan as more customers spent on their bids for keywords on the search engine, which accounts for two-thirds of the mainland market.
'The company delivered very solid results despite a rough macro environment,' said Richard Ji, executive director of Morgan Stanley.
Earnings could have been better had it not been affected by the Olympic Games, said Mr Brueschke.
'Internet traffic surged during the Olympics, but this kind of traffic such as who won the badminton medals, is harder to monetise than something like the search for handbags or shoes.
