- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Oil extends gains, jobs report lifts Wall Street
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Top EU court finds against FIFA in key transfer market ruling
- Oil extends gains, Hong Kong stocks resume rally
- 'A man provides': Ukrainian miners send families away as Russia advances
- EU states greenlight extra tariffs on EVs from China
- Hong Kong stocks resume rally, oil dips after Middle East-fuelled surge
- Crude stable after Israel-Iran surge, Hong Kong stocks resume gains
- Hera spacecraft to probe asteroid deflected by defence test
- US dockworkers to head back to work after tentative deal
- After Helene's destruction, North Carolina starts to rebuild
- Dockers end three-day strike at Montreal port
- What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?
- Israel-Hamas war causes 86-percent dive in Gaza GDP: IMF
- Milan's Morata moves house after Inter-fan town mayor 'violates' privacy
- 'Devastating' storm hits Augusta National but Masters will go on
- Relief in Brazil, Asia over delay to EU deforestation rules
- Oil prices jump, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Biden says 'discussing' possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
- Oil prices rise, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Oil rallies, stocks mostly retreat on Middle East tensions
- Phasing out teen smoking could save 1.2 mn lives: study
- 'Welcome relief': Asia producers hail EU deforestation law delay
- Japan PM slated to announce plans for 'happiness index'
- Turkish inflation falls less than expected in September at 49.4%
- Easing inflation lifts profit at UK supermarket Tesco
- Skiing calls on UN climate science to combat melting future
- China wine industry looks to breed climate resilience
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong drops after surge
- Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures
- Carpe diem: the Costa Rican women turning fish into fashion
- Senegal looks to aquaculture as fish stocks dwindle
- Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?
- Climate change, economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs
- Argentina's Milei vetoes university budget after huge protests
- TotalEnergies plans to grow oil and gas production until 2030
- 2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong reverses after surge
- Tunisia readies for vote as incumbent Saied eyes victory
- High childcare costs in US weigh on women's employment
- US voters seek help with crushing childcare costs
- Taiwan shuts down for second day as Typhoon Krathon to land
- Supercharged storms: how climate change amplifies cyclones
Baidu reports 5% year-on-year decrease in Q2 revenue
Chinese internet giant Baidu Inc. on Tuesday announced second-quarter revenues of 29.6 billion yuan ($4.3 billion), down five percent from last year after the company faced a challenging economic climate and tight controls on China's once-thriving tech sector.
Other Chinese tech giants, including Tencent and e-commerce behemoth JD.com, had also reported disappointing results in recent weeks.
China's major tech companies have been grappling with economic uncertainty, Covid-19 restrictions that have kept consumers jittery, and heightened scrutiny from regulators in recent months.
Baidu, which operates China's most widely used search engine, saw revenues decrease but posted a net profit of 3.6 billion yuan ($522 million), buoyed by a 31 percent year-on-year growth in its cloud computing business.
"Despite a challenging macro environment caused by Covid-19, Baidu Core generated RMB23.2 billion in revenues in the second quarter," CEO Robin Li was quoted as saying in an official press release.
"Going forward, we remain committed to quality revenue growth and sustainable business models."
Last year, the Beijing-based group reported second-quarter revenue of 31.4 billion yuan ($4.5 billion), up 20 percent year-on-year at the time.
Baidu has heavily diversified into artificial intelligence, cloud computing and autonomous driving technologies in recent years, as advertising revenue remains sluggish.
Li claimed Apollo Go, its autonomous driving arm, further consolidated its position as a leading intelligent ride-hailing provider, with fully driverless taxi services launched in the cities of Chongqing and Wuhan.
Beijing regulators' widespread crackdown on the tech sector, beginning in late 2020, saw record fines, cancelled IPOs and lengthy investigations targeting top players, which decimated revenues and put further pressure on the stalling economy.
The campaign is intended to reduce monopolistic practices and promote competition between internet platforms.
Last week, Alibaba rival JD.com reported its slowest revenue growth to date in the second quarter, after tech giant Tencent reported its first drop in quarterly revenue since going public.
Didi Chuxing, China's answer to Uber, was also fined the equivalent of $1.2 billion last month after a year-long cybersecurity investigation.
Many parts of China have faced lockdowns and other Covid restrictions in recent months, disrupting business activity and adding to consumer worries as Beijing tries to stamp out the Omicron variant's spread under its strict zero-Covid policy.
A.Agostinelli--CPN