China criticises Alibaba in report withheld until after IPO

Chinese regulators have accused e-commerce giant Alibaba of allowing sales of fake and shoddy goods and other mismanagement in a report that was withheld until now to avoid disrupting its US stock market debut.
The report today by China's industrial regulator said Alibaba allowed unlicensed merchants to use its sales platforms and failed to protect consumers' rights adequately.
The report was the result of a meeting in July but said it was withheld to avoid affecting progress toward Alibaba's stock market listing in New York. The company went public in September after raising a record USD 25 billion in an initial public stock offering.

An Alibaba spokesman said the company was preparing a public statement about the report.