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Netmarble Corp.’s
251270,
shares rallied Thursday, after China approved new foreign videogames amid easing curbs on the industry.
Shares in the South Korean videogame developer jumped as much as 23% to 63,200 won ($49.58) in morning trading, the sharpest intraday gain on record, according to FactSet. The benchmark Kospi
180721,
was 1.4% lower.
Netmarble’s rally followed an announcement Wednesday by China’s main videogame regulator, the National Press and Publication Administration, that it approved 44 imported titles earlier this month, resuming granting new publishing licenses frozen since mid-2021.
Three of Netmarble’s game titles–“Ni no Kuni: Cross Worlds,” “A3: Still Alive” and “Shop Titans”–were approved for release in the world’s largest gaming market.
Netmarble is set to benefit the most among local peers from the move by China, which approved a total of seven South Korean videogames.
China’s easing of regulations on the gaming industry is likely to be a boon for Netmarble’s push for an earnings recovery next year.
Market analysts said they expect Netmarble to post its first-ever annual loss in 2022 due to the poor performance of existing videogames before turning around in 2023.
