The Chinese ecommerce site of whose owner Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) owns 40 percent is growing fast. Alibaba Group’s Alibaba.com Q2 profit beat analysts’ forecasts by rising 28 percent from last year to RMB464.5 million (US$71.5 million).
The company said the increase reflects its “focus on creating more value for our existing customers with enhanced products, services, and trust and safety initiatives, rather than accelerating new customer acquisition”.
Customer numbers jumped nearly 60 percent over the year to 21.6 million after what Alibaba said was a “significant increase in overseas traffic” – traffic to its international marketplace is up 65 percent for the year.
In its disclosure, Alibaba.com made no reference to Yahoo or to Alipay, Alibaba Group’s online payments company, a sale of which Yahoo recently alleged was agreed under the nose of Alibaba Group’s directors without consent.
Both sides last month agreed a compromise in which Alipay would transfer to one of three parts in to which Alibaba Group CEO Jack Ma recently split Alibab Group’s Taobao e-commerce division. Alibaba Group will take 49.9 percent of Alipay profits and between $2 billion and $6 billion of an Alipay IPO.