The news drove Baidu's US-listed shares more than 5 percent
up in pre-market trading even as the company cautioned that the second quarter
would be more challenging.
Revenue for the three months to March 31 rose 1 percent to
CNY 28.41 billion, the slowest growth in six quarters, but topped an analysts'
average estimate of CNY 27.82 billion, IBES data from Refinitiv showed.
It posted a net loss of CNY 885 million, or CNY 2.87 per
American Depository Share (ADS), amid an economic downturn and pandemic
resurgence in China.
A year earlier it had posted a profit of CNY 25.65 billion,
or CNY 73.76 per ADS.
"Since mid-March, our business has been negatively
impacted by the recent COVID-19 resurgence in China," Robin Li, Baidu's
founder and chief executive, said in a statement, adding that challenges
related to the virus will continue to pressure its operations in the near term.
Revenue for Baidu Core, which includes online ad sales and
non-ad sales from its AI-powered products including AI cloud, rose 4 percent to
CNY 20.48 billion.
Its online ad revenue dropped 4 percent year-on-year to CNY
15.7 billion.
The second quarter will be more challenging for the company,
compared with the first quarter, Baidu's Chief Financial Officer Luo Rong said
during a conference call.
Sales from Baidu AI cloud, part of the non-ad revenue and
one of its fastest-growing sectors, jumped 45 percent, according to Luo.
Founded as a search engine tool, the company has expanded
into cloud services, autonomous driving and robotaxis in recent years as
competition rises for its core search platform and advertisement business.
Last month Baidu received permits to deploy robotaxis
without humans in the driving seat on open Chinese roads for the first time.
Apollo Go, Baidu's robotaxi service, currently available in
10 Chinese cities, operated around 196,000 rides during the quarter. © Reuters