(Yicai Global) June 10 -- Bilibili’s stock price plunged after the Chinese video-streaming platform’s net loss more than doubled in the first quarter from a year earlier because of challenges brought about by Covid-19 outbreaks and lockdowns in China.

Shares of Bilibili [HKG: 9626] dropped 5.8 percent to close at HKD219.80 (USD28) each in Hong Kong today, after its New York-listed stock [NASDAQ: BILI] slumped 14.8 percent to USD25.32 yesterday.

The net loss widened 152.4 percent to CNY2.3 billion (USD360 million) in the three months ended March 31, versus CNY904.9 million (USD135.3 million) a year ago, the Shanghai-based company said in an earnings report released yesterday. Revenue rose 30 percent to CNY5.05 billion.

“In the face of the unexpected Covid-19 resurgence and lockdowns, the first quarter presented new challenges impacting businesses nationwide, particularly in Shanghai, where our headquarters is based,” Chief Executive Rui Chen said.

“During this period, our priority was to keep our employees safe and maintain normal business operations while over 8,000 employees worked from home,” Rui said.

Revenue from value-added services jumped 37 percent to CNY2.05 billion, accounting for almost 41 percent of the total, after an increase in paying users of its premium membership program and live broadcasts. Mobile gaming income rose 16 percent to CNY1.4 billion thanks to new titles.

Average monthly active users and mobile MAUs soared 31 percent and 33 percent to 293.6 million and 276.4 million, respectively, from a year ago. Average daily active users rose 32 percent to 79.4 million and average monthly paying users jumped 44 percent to 27.2 million.

“Confronting the challenges, we delivered solid growth metrics in terms of our MAUs and DAUs, with improved user engagement levels,” Rui said. “Daily time spent per user increased significantly to 95 minutes in the first quarter, setting a new record high.”

For the three months through June, Bilibili forecast a 7.8 percent to 10 percent increase in revenue to between CNY4.85 billion and CNY4.95 billion.

Editor: Futura Costaglione