Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Alibaba, for instance, traded at just 15 times and 8.8 times their forward price-to-earnings ratio, respectively, heading into the earnings season. 'Cost Discipline' Cost controls and new growth engines are key to separating the winners from losers, market watchers said. "Some companies which had good cost discipline to face a slower economic growth environment resulted in good earnings growth," said Pruksa Iamthongthong, senior investment director of Asian equities at abrdn. Firms with strong competitive advantages and better earnings visibility are best positioned for a recovery, she added.