阿里巴巴二季度營收優於預期
Alibaba, the Chinese ecommerce group founded by Jack Ma, delivered its fastest pace of quarterly sales growth since its 2014 flotation as it defied the wider slowdown in the Chinese economy and fears about its business model.
馬雲創立的中國電商集團阿里巴巴(Alibaba)實現了自2014年上市以來最快的季度銷售增長，頂住了中國經濟整體放緩的趨勢及對其商業模式的擔憂。
Revenue at the New York-listed company jumped 59 per cent year on year to $4.8bn in the three months to the end of June, slightly ahead of analyst expectations of $4.5bn. That came on the back of a resilient performance by its main Chinese platform, fuelled by increasing mobile commerce and rapid growth in its nascent cloud computing business.
這家在紐約上市的公司在截至6月底的3個月裏收入同比上升59%，達到48億美元，略高於分析師預期的45億美元。這得益於其主要中國電商平臺在移動商務日益增長和新生的雲計算業務快速發展的助推下表現強韌。
Alibaba’s better than expected figures came a day after its main Chinese rival, , reported results that were ahead of market predictions.
阿里巴巴報告優於預期的數據一天前，其主要中國競爭對手京東()也報告了優於市場預測的業績。
Alibaba shares were up 5.4 per cent in late-afternoon trading yesterday to $92.05, putting the group on course to set a one-year high.
阿里巴巴的股價在昨日尾盤交易中上漲5.4%，至每股92.05美元，逼近一年高點。
Earnings before interest, tax and amortisation rose 40 per cent year on year to $2.1bn in the June quarter.
在截至6月底的季度，利息、稅項、折舊及攤銷前盈利(EBITDA)同比增長40%，至21億美元。
Net income fell 77 per cent in the same period to $1.1bn — the equivalent quarter a year ago had been boosted by a one-off investment gain.
同期淨利潤下降77%，至11億美元，一年前同一季度的淨利潤得到一次性投資收益的提振。
Joseph Tsai, executive vice-chairman, told analysts on a conference call that the growth in revenue at the company’s core business would “surprise many given the economic headwinds and reduced expectations for the industry”.
阿里巴巴集團執行副主席蔡崇信(Joseph Tsai)在電話會議中告訴分析師，該公司核心業務的收入增長將“讓很多人感到驚訝——考慮到經濟上的逆風和對行業預期的下降”。
He added: “We’ve established strong competitive positions and firm foundations for future growth.”
他補充道：“我們確立了強大的競爭地位，併爲未來增長奠定了堅實基礎。”
The company, which made history when it launched the biggest-ever listing on the New York Stock Exchange in 2014, has seen its shares struggle since then because of investor concerns about its expansion prospects and a lack of transparency about its performance across different divisions.
阿里巴巴曾經於2014年在紐約證交所(NYSE)進行史上最大規模的上市，創造了歷史。但其股價在這之後陷入掙扎，原因是投資者擔憂其擴張前景，也擔憂其不同部門的具體表現缺乏透明度。
As part of an effort to boost its standing with investors, the company this quarter broke out its numbers into four segments: core online marketplaces, cloud computing, mobile media and other initiatives.
作爲提高其在投資者中的聲望的努力的一部分，該公司在本季度分別報告了4塊業務的業績數據：核心在線市場、雲計算、移動媒體和其他業務。
Duncan Clark, head of Beijing-based consultancy BDA and author of a recent book on Alibaba, said the results were “pretty impressive” with “cloud revenues becoming meaningful and mobile storming ahead”.
北京諮詢機構博達克諮詢公司(BDA)、最近出過一本有關阿里巴巴的書的鄧肯•克拉克(Duncan Clark)表示，阿里巴巴的業績“十分令人印象深刻”，包括“雲計算營收增至有意義的水平，而移動業務迅猛增長”。
He said the increased disclosure would be “helpful” for investors, but it was unlikely to sway short-sellers “dead set on doubting the company”.
他說，提高信息披露程度會“有助於”投資者，但不太可能改變那些“執着於質疑該公司的”賣空者。
Mr Tsai said Alibaba’s prospects were supported by the deepening engagement on its platforms, which brands were increasingly using for marketing, as well as new business areas such as cloud computing, where revenue grew 156 per cent year on year to $187m.
蔡崇信表示，支撐阿里巴巴前景的是深化對其平臺的參與（各品牌日趨利用其平臺開展營銷）以及雲計算（營收同比增長156%，至1.87億美元）等新業務領域。
He also suggested that the company would continue to expand outside China, following investments over the past year in Lazada, a Southeast Asian ecommerce platform, and PayTM, an Indian payment gateway.
他還暗示，繼去年投資東南亞電商平臺Lazada和印度支付中介PayTM之後，該公司會繼續向中國以外擴張。
Alibaba gave no update on the status of an investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, which it said in May was probing possible violations of federal securities law related to the way Alibaba reported its financials.
今年5月，美國證券交易委員會(SEC)曾表示，正在調查阿里巴巴披露財務狀況的方式中可能違反聯邦證券法律的行爲。對於該機構的調查進展，阿里巴巴並未給出最新信息。
