Tencent’s market value soars

HONG KONG: Robust earnings from Tencent Holdings sent its market value surging by as much as $34 billion on Thursday, helping the Chinese technology giant briefly reclaim the mantle of Asia´s most valuable listed company.

The social media and gaming firm had posted on Wednesday better-than-expected net profit and gross profit margin for the first quarter, driven by the strong performance of its mobile gaming business and gains in its sprawling investment operations.