NEW YORK (AP) – Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba’s second-quarter net income fell 39 percent as it spent more on investing in its mobile business and marketing and gave some executives stock grants, but its revenue surged 54 percent on strong user demand.
It was the first earnings report from Alibaba, which operates popular e-commerce platforms Taobao and Tmall in China, since it went public on the New York Stock Exchange in September. The $25 billion initial public offering was the largest ever. Its platforms account for some 80 percent of Chinese online commerce.
Chinese e-commerce is growing fast. Online spending by Chinese shoppers is forecast to triple from its 2011 size by 2015. Beyond that, Alibaba has said it plans to expand into emerging markets and, eventually, into Europe and the U.S.
The company does not compete with its merchants or hold inventory, serving instead as a conduit that links buyers and sellers of all kinds.
For the three months ended Sept. 30 net income after paying preferred dividends fell to $485 million, or 20 cents per share. Excluding one-time items, net income was 45 cents per share. Analysts expected 45 cents per shares, according to FactSet.