Alibaba (1688.HK) December Update

Hangzhou-based Alibaba Group's business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce subsidiary Alibaba.com Ltd. (1688.HK) began trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's main board on November 6. The shares debuted at HK$30 and ended the day at HK$39.50, up substantially from its initial public offering price. JLM Pacific Epoch surveyed 1,000 Gold Suppliers in the first two weeks of December to get a better understanding of customer satisfaction, spending, discounts, and other trends in China's rapidly growing B2B marketplace.

Alibaba.com Eyes India…But No Plans Yet For Acquisitions Or Even An Office Here

Alibaba.com, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed B2B arm of the Alibaba group of companies is eying India as a priority market. The company claims to have a customer base of 340,000 from India, and is targeting around 600,000 by the end of next year. However, there are no immediate plans for acquisitions or even setting up an office in India, Brian A Wong, Sr. Director (International Business Development & Marketing) told PTI, though the story does mention “the roll-out of its aggressive expansion programme in India”. Alibaba.in appears to be taken...Nevertheless, this should be good competition for eBay India, which has recently launched an advertising campaign on TV.

Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) owns 39 percent of the Alibaba Group, and had purchased a direct 1 percent stake in Alibaba.com, spending $100 million for 57.5 million shares, at $1.74 per share.