Uber’s first-quarter losses reach one billion dollars despite revenue growth
Uber has posted one billion US dollars (£790m) in losses in its first financial report since its lacklustre debut on Wall Street, even as its revenue jumped 20% from a year earlier.
The ride-hailing giant said that its revenue rose to 3.1 billion dollars in the first quarter of 2019, beating expectations of analysts polled by FactSet.
The San Francisco-based firm, like its main US competitor Lyft, has spent heavily on rider promotions and driver incentives to gain market share, one reason the companies have struggled to reach profitability.
Both are dealing with intense competition, high costs to pay drivers, increased regulation by cities and a long, uncertain road to the development of autonomous vehicles.
“Our investments remain focused on global platform expansion and long-term product and technology differentiation, but we will not hesitate to invest to defend our market position globally,” said Nelson Chai, Uber’s chief financial officer, in a statement.
Mr Chai added that Uber noticed less aggressive pricing by its competitors, and that trend has continued into the second quarter.
Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said customer engagement across Uber’s platform was higher than ever, with an average of 17 million trips per day.
“Earlier this month we took the important step of becoming a public company, and we are now focused on executing our strategy to become a one-stop shop for local transportation and commerce,” Mr Khosrowshahi said in a statement.
Uber went public three weeks ago and its shares have been trading below its IPO price ever since.
In Uber’s first day of trading, the company’s market value took a 617 million-dollar (£489m) hit, the largest loss on the first day of trading by a US-based company in recent history, according to Renaissance Capital.
Uber’s food delivery business — Uber Eats — grew rapidly in the first quarter, with gross bookings, which represents all the money Uber collects on the platform except for tips, doubling over the course of the year.
The service raked in 536 million dollars (£425m) in revenue, up 89% from the same time last year.
Asked during a conference call with investors about potential mergers in the food delivery business, Mr Khosrowshahi said Uber will consider playing a role in industry consolidation if it makes sense for its shareholders.
“Sooner or later we will be the biggest player on a global basis,” Mr Khosrowshahi said.
Uber is being aggressive about tying its various services together, Mr Khosrowshahi said. The company is reaching new customers through its Uber Eats and new mobility products such as scooters that have not used the ride-hailing business before.
For ride-hailing, Uber’s core business, revenues grew 26% in the US and Canada to 1.8 billion dollars (£1.4bn), and 26% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa to 487 million dollars (386m).
Ride-hailing revenues grew 6% in Asia to 267 million dollars (£211m), but fell 13% in Latin America to 450 million dollars (356m).
