Alibaba beats quarterly revenue estimates

[SHANGHAI] China's Alibaba Group beat estimates for quarterly revenue on Thursday, as its core e-commerce business continued to grow following China's emergence from the coronavirus lockdown.

The company's US-listed shares, which have gained about 39 per cent this year, fell nearly 2 per cent in trading before the bell.

The results come on the heels of China's surprise suspension of Alibaba affiliate Ant Group's record US$37 billion listing at Shanghai stock exchange on Tuesday that was viewed by analysts and investors as an attempt to cut founder Jack Ma and his financial services empire down to size.

Sales from Alibaba's core e-commerce business rose 29 per cent to 130.92 billion yuan (S$26.7 billion) in the reported quarter.

Net income slumped 63 per cent to 26.52 billion yuan, as the company had booked a one-time gain last year from its 33 per cent equity interest in Ant Group.

Revenue rose 30 per cent to 155.06 billion yuan in the quarter ended Sept 30, compared to estimates of 154.74 yuan, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

REUTERS