Sea Limited, the tech conglomerate situated in Singapore and the owner of the e-commerce platform Shopee, has reportedly posted an increase in shares in the US trading following a surprising profit hike. This has invigorated investors who had anticipated that the gaming and e-commerce company would bring out of one of the largest turnarounds the region's developing IT sector has ever seen.

As the Singapore-based firm reported a fourth-quarter net income of US$426.8 million, bolstered by significant expense cuts, the stock rose 22% on Tuesday to settle at US$80.06, raising its market value by US$8 billion. Economists estimated an average loss of US$434 million.

Forrest Li, the founder of Sea, had his personal wealth increase by over US$900 million as a result of the company's astounding 22% jump. This is a victory for the Internet mogul, who was born in China and oversaw the most difficult year in his firm's history.

Sources estimate Li's current net worth at US$5.3 billion, leaving him up and running with competitors including Gu Xiaoqing, the founder of Shein, as well as Kakao's Brian Kim.

The initial optimism conceals the magnitude of the task facing Li, a gaming geek who started a business in 2009 that has come to represent Southeast Asia's internet growth.

Investors flocked to the firm at the time, funded by Chinese internet company Tencent Holdings, briefly elevating its stock to the top of the global market.

A large portion of the profit announced on Tuesday was the result of drastic cost cutbacks, including the US$700 million drop in marketing expense alone, as well as on-paper advantages from the way debts and other types of expenses, were accounted for.

Some analysts raised concerns regarding if a future reduction in spending may endanger the power play throughout a post-release conference call to determine if the firm had the plan to revive growth.

Source credit: https://www.straitstimes.com/business/shopee-parent-sea-soars-22-after-reporting-surprise-first-profit