China’s E-Commerce Giant Sees Slower Growth

Alibaba, which is partly owned by Yahoo, suffers slowdown

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China’s biggest e-commerce company Alibaba, partly owned by Yahoo, said Tuesday its revenue growth slowed in the third quarter as some merchants who sell on the site held back on marketing spending.

Alibaba reported revenues of $1.78 billion in the third quarter of 2013 up from $1.18 billion a year earlier, as it prepares for an initial public offering. But the pace of revenue growth slipped, the Wall Street Journal reported. Alibaba’s total profits rose to $792 million in the third quarter after it lost $246 million the same period last year, when it incurred a $550 million charge to buy back some of Yahoo’s shares.

Yahoo owns a 24% stake in Alibaba and is hoping to reap the rewards of the company’s IPO.

The China-based website has been compared to Amazon and eBay, but in fact has a somewhat different model: it serves as an online bazaar were various merchants can sell products ranging from women’s jewelry to raw steel and heavy industrial products. Not unlike Google, the company serves as an advertising platform for global entrepreneurs expanding their retail operations.

[WSJ]