I was pretty bored in March 2020. We all were. So I buckled and downloaded the app for dancing Gen Zs. Four years later, here I am mindlessly scrolling through it hours after I should have gone to bed. Am I surprised TikTok maker Bytedance pulled in $40 billion of profit last year? Not at all. Then again, maybe the app has programmed me to say that.

The lowdown

• 🇨🇳 Fitch has cut China's ratings outlook on growth risks.

• 🎈 US inflation is expected to have risen to 3.4% in May.

• 📈 Chipmaker TSMC posts its fastest monthly revenue growth since 2022.

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ByteDance’s profit jumps 60%, overtaking rival Tencent

TikTok owner ByteDance’s profit surged about 60% last year ($), outpacing rivals Tencent and Alibaba. EBITDA jumped to more than $40 billion from about $25 billion in 2022, according to Bloomberg citing people familiar with the matter. Sales increased to nearly $120 billion, from $80 billion.

It’s the first time ByteDance has overtaken Tencent in both revenue and profit. That comes as Douyin, the company’s domestic version of TikTok, becomes an all-in-one platform like Tencent’s WeChat, while adding e-commerce features that take on Alibaba and food delivery in a bid to compete with Meituan.

The rollout of TikTok Shop in markets like the US and Southeast Asia have also unlocked new revenue sources abroad. TikTok aims to grow its US e-commerce business tenfold this year, despite a crisis in its most lucrative market. In March, the US House of Representatives passed a bill to ban TikTok in the US unless ByteDance sells off the unit, though the measure faces a less certain outcome in the Senate.

The content we're consuming today

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Off-balance sheet items

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The bottom line