Hong Kong — Tencent Holdings rose in Hong Kong after posting accelerating sales growth and topping the most optimistic of analyst estimates. The shares rose as much as 2.7% to HK$393.40 in early trading on Thursday, on pace for a record close. JSE-listed Naspers, which owns a third of Tencent, posted a record close on Wednesday after Tencent’s earnings news, rising 1.95% higher to R3,661.42. Tencent shares closed lower on Wednesday, but its results were released after Asian markets closed. The owner of WeChat, the social network that is nearly ubiquitous in China, reported a 61% rise in third-quarter sales on Wednesday. Fuelled by advertising and hit game Honour of Kings, the growth was the fastest since 2010, when revenue was a mere one-fourteenth of its current level. By getting WeChat onto almost a billion smartphones in China, Tencent has leveraged the instant message service into an entertainment and gaming platform that is driving advertising sales. Although the Shenzhen-based...

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