BABA Chinese government reshuffle spooks investorsSHORT
The Alibaba (BABA) share price has struggled so far in 2022, falling by 44.7% year-to-date (YTD).
Chinese e-commerce and technology sectors are facing fresh challenges: The Nasdaq Golden Dragon index, which tracks US-listed shares in Chinese companies, shed a record 14% following announcements that Xi Jinping has extended his rule to a third term as president – and filled senior government roles with party loyalists. In the 24 hours following the announcement, Alibaba fell 18%.
The Hang Seng Index also fared dismally, dropping 1,030 points to a 13-year low, following investor concern that the new government would stifle the economy and private enterprise. With China’s zero-Covid policy now cemented in the near term, along with government support for Vladimir Putin, a bearish sentiment might continue for tech stocks as investors stick to a risk-off mode.
The strict zero-Covid controls implemented by the Chinese government have resulted in lockdowns which have disturbed supply chains and the manufacturing industry.
In an article for CNBC, Antonella Teodoro, senior consultant at MDS Transmodal, said: “China’s zero-Covid approach is impacting production and manufacturers are seeking alternatives to the current ‘factory of the world’.
“Drilling down to the individual commodity groups exported from China, we observe that China has been continuing to lose market share, with Vietnam amongst the countries gaining importance on the international landscape.”
In March, the BABA share price fell below $100 for the first time since 2017. It has since been unable to hold above that level. But the stock had gained value since late May after the company announced its first-quarter earnings report.
The June-quarter earnings report was more positive: Daniel Zhang, chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group, said: “Following a relatively slow April and May, we saw signs of recovery across our businesses in June. We are confident in our growth opportunities in the long term given our high-quality consumer base and the resilience of our diversified business model catering to different demands of our customers.”
Toby Xu, chief financial officer of Alibaba Group, also commented: “Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 resurgence, we delivered stable revenue performance year-over-year. We have narrowed losses in key strategic businesses given ongoing improvements in operating efficiency and increasing focus on cost optimisation .
“We recently shared our plan to add Hong Kong as another primary listing venue. By becoming primary listed on both Hong Kong and New York stock exchanges, we aim to further expand and diversify our investor base.”
Is the current share price at a good entry point for investors looking to make an Alibaba stock investment? Has the share price bottomed out or is there potential for it to retreat again?
Historical stock price data shows that BABA dropped by 49% in 2021, ending the year at $118.79 a share, as worries about the Chinese market and a sell-off in technology stocks in the US exerted further downward pressure.
In April last year, the Chinese government fined the company $2.8bn for what the State Administration for Market Regulation said was monopolistic behaviour
The record fine was lower than the market had anticipated and removed some of the uncertainty surrounding the potential penalty that would be imposed. However, a gain in the share price was short-lived and it continued the downward trend that started in October 2020, after hitting its all-time highest stock price of $309.92.
Alibaba announced its December quarter 2021 results on the same day that Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine (24 February 2022), leading to much market upheaval, particularly in the technology sector.
What may also have concerned investors was that its revenue figures represented its slowest quarterly growth rate since going public in 2014. Revenues totalled RMB242.58bn ($38.07bn) in the October-December period, an increase of 10% year-over-year (YoY).
