As growth slows and trade risks loom over China, Alibaba focuses on SE Asia

Jack Ma-promoted firm posted 41% revenue growth in the December quarter, but chances are the growth rate will slump

Alibaba Group Corp, the Chinese e-commerce behemoth, is looking to leverage its global investments, especially those in South East Asia region, to offset risk from a slowing Chinese economy and trade risk at home turf.

“We are committed to globalise our business,” said chief executive officer Daniel Zhang, on a post-earnings conference call on Wednesday. 

“One of the key regions we will stay focused on in the near-term is Southeast Asia, which is the fourth largest region by GDP, after the US, Europe and China. It has over 650 million in population that is relatively young. Online shopping penetration still