On the evening of January 16, Chinese leading consumer stock China Duty Free released its 2024 performance report. Due to factors such as the “downgrading of consumption” in China, the company experienced significant declines in both revenue and net profit last year. As of now, China Duty Free’s market value has evaporated by 624.5 billion yuan.
According to the announcement by China Duty Free, the company is expected to achieve operating income of 56.492 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 16.36%; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company is 4.263 billion yuan, a decrease of 36.5% year-on-year.
In explaining the decline in performance, China Duty Free stated in the announcement that the main reasons were changes in consumer demand and industry cycles, leading to sustained pressure on the company’s operational performance.
China Duty Free also mentioned in its performance report that in 2024, the company continued to develop the Hainan market. However, based on sales data, the “attraction” of duty-free shopping on Hainan Island weakened at a noticeable speed last year.
According to statistics from Haikou Customs, in 2024, Haikou Customs supervised duty-free shopping on Hainan Island with a total purchase amount of 30.94 billion yuan, 5.683 million shopping trips, and 33.082 million items purchased. Compared to 2023, all three data points showed a certain degree of decline.
Currently, China Duty Free owns 6 duty-free shops on Hainan, holding a considerable market share.
In 2024, China Duty Free saw declines in both revenue and net profit. Apart from the decline in performance, the company’s market value also significantly shrank. At its peak, China Duty Free’s market value reached 750 billion yuan, while as of the close on January 16, the total market value of A shares and H shares has reduced to 125.5 billion yuan, a decrease of over 80%.
Public records show that China Duty Free (Group) Co., Ltd., founded in 1984, is the only state-owned enterprise authorized by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China to conduct duty-free business nationwide. It is also the regulatory body for the duty-free industry nationwide. The company has over 200 duty-free shops (including airport duty-free shops) in 29 provinces in China.