China’s film consumption market continues to slump despite the significant subsidies invested by the authorities to boost the movie market last year. Several film and television companies have recently released previews, anticipating a substantial drop in performance or net profits for the fiscal year 2024.
On January 23, Bona Film Group Co., Ltd. (“Bona Film”) disclosed that the company expects a net loss of 637 million to 881 million yuan in 2024, compared to a loss of about 553 million yuan in the same period last year.
According to Bona Film, the annual total box office of the Chinese film market in 2024 was 42.502 billion yuan, a 22.6% decrease from 2023, with 1.01 billion moviegoers, a 22.3% decrease from 2023. Both the company’s film business and cinema business were impacted to varying degrees.
During the reporting period, the company invested in and distributed a total of 7 films, achieving box office revenues of 4.697 billion yuan, a 31.9% decrease from 2023. As of the end of December 2024, the company owned a total of 111 cinemas with 908 screens, and the box office revenue of the company’s cinemas in 2024 was 720 million yuan (excluding service fees), a 31.2% decrease from 2023.
Wanda Film Holding Co., Ltd (“Wanda Film”) issued a performance forecast on January 18, expecting a net loss of 850 million to 950 million yuan in 2024, compared to a loss of 912 million yuan in the same period last year.
Wanda Film explained that in 2024, the pressure on cinema operations was due to factors such as insufficient supply of blockbuster films. The national box office in 2024 decreased by 22.6% compared to 2023, with moviegoers decreasing by 22.3% compared to the previous year.
Throughout the reporting period, Wanda Film’s domestic owned theaters achieved a box office revenue of 5.72 billion yuan (excluding service fees), a 24.3% decrease year-on-year, with 140 million moviegoers, a 23.7% decrease from the previous year. Non-box office revenues in traditional theaters were also affected by the decline in audience numbers.
As of January 21, Wanda Film’s latest market value was 23.9 billion yuan, evaporating over 170 billion yuan from its highest point.
Hengdian Group (“Hengdian Group”) disclosed its performance forecast for 2024 on January 17, expecting a net loss of 90 million to 120 million yuan for the year, compared to a profit of 166 million yuan in the same period last year; and an adjusted net loss of 200 million to 270 million yuan, compared to a profit of 73.8238 million yuan in the previous year.
According to the announcement, the company’s performance changes were due to the total annual box office of China’s film market, which decreased by 22.6% to 42.502 billion yuan in 2024 from 549.15 billion yuan in 2023; urban cinema viewership was 1.01 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 22.3%. Influenced by the nationwide economic slowdown, insufficient supply of blockbuster films, and lower-than-expected demand for movie viewing, the company’s film projection business revenue and related derivative business revenue decreased year-on-year.
China Central Television Media Co., Ltd (“CCTV Media”) issued its performance forecast on January 16, expecting a net profit attributable to the owners of the parent company of 39 million to 49 million yuan in 2024, a decrease of 79% to 84% compared to the previous year.
The main reasons for the forecasted decline in performance include a slight decrease in operating profits in the film and television segments, as well as a decrease in investment income due to changes in the stock prices of listed companies held by the funds in which the company participates.
CCTV Media is a media A-share listed company controlled by CCTV, mainly engaging in film and television shooting, production, tourism, commercial advertising development, and other businesses.