Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba's revenue jumps 32%

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba saw its revenue jump 32 per cent year-on-year for the quarter ending in December, it said in a statement Thursday, despite slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy. 

PHOTO: REUTERS

JAN 28, 20169:35 PM

[SHANGHAI] Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba saw its revenue jump 32 per cent year-on-year for the quarter ending in December, it said in a statement Thursday, despite slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy.

Alibaba, which dominates the consumer-to-consumer market in China, said revenue reached US$5.33 billion in the December quarter, beating an average forecast of 33.2 billion yuan in a survey of analysts by Bloomberg News.

Investors have hammered the New York-listed shares of Alibaba as a proxy for China's falling growth, weakening currency and domestic stock market turmoil.

China's economy grew 6.9 per cent in 2015, the slowest rate since 1990. Fourth-quarter growth alone slowed to 6.8 per cent, its worst since the global financial crisis in early 2009.

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"Alibaba Group had an outstanding quarter, reaching a milestone of over 400 million annual active buyers and continuing our unrivalled leadership in mobile," Alibaba chief executive Daniel Zhang said in the statement.

Alibaba said its net income attributable to shareholders more than doubled, surging 111 per cent on the year to US$1.93 billion for the three-month period.

Its closely-watched gross merchandise volume (GMV) - a measure of value for online sales - was US$149 billion for the period, up 23 per cent year-on-year.

The quarter included China's November 11 "Singles Day", said to be the world's biggest online shopping spree, when Alibaba saw US$14.3 billion worth of goods settled through its online payments unit.

AFP

    
 

Amazon says Exclusives store sales top US$50m in first year

Amazon.com Inc said that sales on Exclusives, its platform for products not available anywhere else, topped US$50 million in less than a year since its launch and the site includes more than 120 brands, the first time it has disclosed the data. 

PHOTO: REUTERS

JAN 28, 20167:07 PM

[SAN FRANCISCO] Amazon.com Inc said that sales on Exclusives, its platform for products not available anywhere else, topped US$50 million in less than a year since its launch and the site includes more than 120 brands, the first time it has disclosed the data.

The sales represents a tiny fraction of those on Amazon's third-party marketplace platform, which allows other merchants to sell on Amazon's site. Third party merchants account for roughly 40 percent of Amazon's total site sales.

But Amazon said the store serves as an important avenue for the retailer to get first dibs on new products that could be the next best-seller on the marketplace platform.

It is also part of Amazon's effort to target niche shoppers through stores like Handmade, which offers hand-crafted items, and Launchpad, which sells crowd-funded products.

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Now the company plans to expand the site, which lists 10,000 products including a bluetooth-enabled "smart bag," although it did not provide details. "We do expect the broadening of the product categories and geographical expansion," said Peter Sauerborn, director of business development at Amazon who leads the store.

In order to be listed on the site, brands agree to let Amazon be the exclusive third-party retailer for their products.

In exchange, merchants gets access to the Fulfillment by Amazon program, which refers to the company's global network of warehouses and its fast shipping and loyalty program, Prime. "There's a whole new group of consumers (the third-party retailers) can draw to Amazon," said Seattle-based Christine Boerner, who runs Cielo, which sells fashionable metallic pillholders through Exclusives.

At the same time, rival shopping sites are also investing in one-of-a-kind merchandise. EBay Inc is returning to its roots by focusing on unique merchandise sold by smaller sellers.

An increasing number of Amazon's third-party merchants are drawn to Amazon's fulfillment program. Active merchants using it grew more than 50 per cent last year and delivered more than 1 billion items worldwide, the company said.

Stephan Aarstol, founder and CEO of San Diego-based Tower Paddle Boards who was connected to Exclusives on the TV program Shark Tank, is an example of why merchants might be interested in Amazon's fulfillment program.

Aarstol said he shipped "several hundred" paddle boards to Amazon's warehouse in the United Kingdom late last year and he expects his merchandise to be available to shoppers across Europe for fast delivery, something he could not have done on his own.

REUTERS

    
 

Ford earnings soar on US auto boom, stronger Europe

JAN 28, 201611:46 PM

[NEW YORK] Ford reported on Thursday a jump in annual profits as it benefited from the US auto boom, a return to profitability in Europe and an accounting change in pension expenses.

Annual profits were US$7.4 billion, up from US$1.8 billion in 2014 as revenues rose 3.8 per cent to US$149.6 billion.

Results reflected the automaker's highest US sales in nine years following the launch of an aluminum-bodied F-150 version of its best-selling F-Series pickup trucks and other revamps.

Ford reported 2015 US auto sales of 2.5 million vehicles, up five per cent from 2014.

North America remained the core of the second-largest US automaker's business, with operating profits rising 25.6 per cent to US$9.3 billion.

In Europe, Ford scored an operating profit of US$259 million, compared with a loss of US$598 million in 2014.

The profit, Ford's first in Europe since 2011, follows significant moves to restructure its European operations over the last couple of years, including plant closures and job cuts.

The gain in Europe helped to offset an annual loss of US$832 million in South America.

Results were boosted by a shift in the accounting of pension plans. When Ford announced the change on January 7, it said it would boost 2015 pre-tax profit by US$1.5 billion.

Earnings for the fourth quarter were US$1.9 billion, up US$4.4 billion from the year-ago period. Quarterly profits were 58 cents per share, seven cents above analyst expectations.

Ford confirmed its 2016 forecast for revenue and earnings per share equal or higher to that in 2015.

"In 2016, we will continue to build on our strengths and accelerate our pace of progress even further, while transforming Ford into both an auto and a mobility company and creating value for all of our stakeholders," said Ford president and chief executive Mark Fields in a statement.

Ford shares fell 3.0 per cent to $11.48 in early trade.

AFP

    
 

Consumer comfort in US climbed last week to three-month high

JAN 28, 201611:19 PM

[WASHINGTON] Consumer confidence climbed last week to the highest level in more than three months as Americans held more favorable views about the buying climate and their finances.

The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index improved to 44.6 in the period ended Jan. 24 from 44 the prior week. The gauge, which is holding above the 2015 average of 42.9, has increased in seven of the last eight weeks after slumping at the end of November to a one-year low.

"We are off to not a bad start for the year - not a thrillingly good one, but certainly not a bad one," said Gary Langer, president of New York-based Langer Research Associates LLC, which compiles the data for Bloomberg. "It certainly makes life easier for many Americans when they are paying less for gasoline, when they are paying less for home heating fuel - those are positives."

Sustained confidence indicates households are looking past unsteady global markets that have dragged down stock prices. A resilient labor market, cheaper gasoline and rising home prices are keeping Americans upbeat about the prospects for the economy and incomes.

The buying-climate gauge rose to 40.2 last week, the second-highest level since May, from 39.2. The weekly measure of households' views of their personal finances rose 1.3 points to 56.3, the strongest reading since October and in line with the 2015 average. The index tracking current views of the economy eased to 37.2 from 37.7.

Sentiment rose to the highest since September among Americans with earnings between US$75,000 and US$100,000. Confidence improved among 35-to-54-year-olds, and women were more upbeat than at any time since October. Confidence improved in three of four regions, with those in the Midwest the most optimistic since March.

Other recent data have shown similar resilience in attitudes. The Conference Board's consumer confidence gauge climbed in January as Americans' expectations about the economy brightened and more households reported plans to buy cars and appliances.

Those figures also showed the proportion of consumers anticipating more job opportunities in the next six months increased and more respondents said they expected their incomes to grow.

BLOOMBERG