Core Viewpoint - The recent earnings reports from Alibaba, Meituan, and JD.com reveal a competitive landscape in the food delivery market, characterized by rising marketing expenses and a struggle for profitability despite revenue growth [3][5][6]. Group 1: Earnings Performance - Alibaba reported Q1 FY2026 revenue of 247.65 billion yuan, a 2% year-on-year increase, and saw its market value rise by over 400 billion HKD on September 1 [2][3]. - Meituan's Q2 FY2025 revenue reached 91.84 billion yuan, reflecting an 11.7% year-on-year growth, but its stock fell significantly post-earnings release [2][3]. - JD.com achieved Q2 FY2025 revenue of 356.66 billion yuan, a 22.4% increase year-on-year, with relatively stable stock performance compared to its peers [2][3]. Group 2: Marketing Expenses - JD.com significantly increased its marketing expenses to 27.01 billion yuan in Q2 FY2025, up 127.63% from the previous year [3][4]. - Alibaba's marketing expenses rose to 53.18 billion yuan, a 62.64% increase year-on-year, with the expense ratio climbing from 13.4% to 21.5% of revenue [3][4]. - Meituan's marketing spending reached 22.52 billion yuan, a 51.8% increase, but it faced the most significant profit decline among the three companies [4][5]. Group 3: Competitive Dynamics - The food delivery market is experiencing intense competition, with JD.com initiating a subsidy war that prompted Alibaba and Meituan to respond [3][6]. - Meituan's market share has been pressured, leading to a forced entry into the subsidy battle, while JD.com and Alibaba view food delivery as a means to enhance their core retail businesses [6][7]. - Analysts suggest that the long-term impact of the subsidy war will be more detrimental to Meituan, as food delivery is its core business, while for JD.com and Alibaba, it is a supplementary service [6][7]. Group 4: AI and Future Investments - Alibaba's cloud revenue surged by 26% to 33.40 billion yuan, with a commitment to invest 380 billion yuan in AI over the next three years [8][9]. - Meituan has also made strides in AI, recently open-sourcing its self-developed model, indicating a competitive push in this area [8][9]. - The capital market perceives Alibaba and ByteDance as stronger players in AI, while Meituan and JD.com are still developing their capabilities [9].