Price wars are not the issue; the problem lies in rules and intervention | Should the takeout battle come to an end (Part 2)

WealthCoffee · 2026-03-27T04:03:15+00:00

Meituan's 2025 financial report shows revenue of 364.855 billion yuan, but a net loss of 23.354 billion yuan. The main reason is attributed to the price war during the food delivery battle. The article questions the true impact of the price war on the industry and explores whether the issues stem from other factors.

WealthCoffee

2026-03-27 04:03:15

Abstract generation in progress

On March 26, Meituan released its 2025 financial report: total revenue was 364.855 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.1%, but after two consecutive years of profitability, it fell back into losses, with a net loss of 23.354 billion yuan. The core local business segment turned from an operating profit of 52.415 billion yuan in 2024 to an operating loss of 6.904 billion yuan in 2025.

Many people attribute the reason to one term—delivery service war. Thus, a seemingly logical conclusion emerges: the price war is harming the industry and must be stopped.

However, few continue to ask: what exactly is this war “hurting”? If the price war were to stop, would the problems disappear? Or, more worth questioning is whether the problems we see are caused by the price war itself or stem from elsewhere?

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