SHANGHAI, March 26 (Reuters) - Chinese food delivery leader Meituan (3690.HK) posted a second quarterly loss in a row and fell just shy of revenue growth estimates on Thursday after a year of bruising, subsidy-fuelled competition in China’s one-hour delivery space.
Meituan has seen its revenue growth and profits pressured for several quarters since e-commerce giants Alibaba-owned (9988.HK) Taobao and JD.com (9618.HK) launched new “instant retail” platforms in early 2025.
Instant retail or quick commerce refers to online purchases - often of food, bubble tea and daily use items - delivered within 60 minutes.
In good news, the early months of 2026 have brought signs the instant retail price war - which has been criticised by Chinese regulators as a “race to the bottom” - might be abating.
<ul>
<li>Meituan’s revenue for the quarter ended December 31 reached 92.1 billion yuan ($13.3 billion), a 4.1% rise from a year ago, compared with 92.2 billion yuan expected by analysts.</li>
<li>Its adjusted net loss narrowed to 15.1 billion yuan from 16 billion yuan in the third quarter. A year earlier, Meituan posted a profit of 9.8 billion yuan.</li>
<li>Earlier this week, Meituan shares jumped 14% after a state media editorial urging an end to China’s food delivery price wars was republished by Chinese regulators, which was interpreted by industry watchers as an official endorsement.</li>
</ul>
($1 = 6.9072 Chinese yuan renminbi)

国家市场监管总局转载《经济日报》文章《外卖大战该结束了》，明确叫停平台补贴内卷。三大平台累计烧钱超800亿后，美团股价盘中大涨超10%，京东、阿里均涨超5%，市场解读为利润修复信号。行业有望从“拼补贴”转向“拼服务”。

国家市场监管总局转载《经济日报》文章《外卖大战该结束了》，明确叫停平台补贴内卷。三大平台累计烧钱超800亿后，美团股价盘中大涨超10%，京东、阿里均涨超5%，市场解读为利润修复信号。行业有望从“拼补贴”转向“拼服务”。

The government halted the food delivery war, and Meituan and Alibaba both saw their stock prices surge!

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MPNGY

- Chinese food delivery leader Meituan reported a second consecutive quarterly loss, with revenue growth falling slightly short of estimates.  
- The company's revenue for the quarter ended December 31 was 92.1 billion yuan, a 4.1% increase from the previous year, while its adjusted net loss narrowed to 15.1 billion yuan.  
- Recent trends suggest the competitive "instant retail" price war may be easing, following a state media editorial urging an end to the price wars, which has been viewed as regulatory support.

Meituan posts another quarterly loss as food delivery wars bite