Alibaba's bold move ignites surge in Asian stocks

March 29, 2023 (MLN): Chinese tech giant Alibaba is all set to split into six business groups, causing its stock prices to surge and boosting Asian stocks on Wednesday, as reported by APP.

The changes, according to Alibaba, are intended to "unlock shareholder value and foster market competitiveness". The Hangzhou-based firm is one of China's leading tech firms with operations in the e-commerce, cloud computing, logistics, media and entertainment, and artificial intelligence.

By 10 am on Wednesday (0200 GMT), Alibaba's Hong Kong-listed shares were up by nearly 14%, while its New York-listed shares also rose in the previous session.

The shakeup plan is expected to lead investors to consider the potential for other tech firms, such as Tencent, to follow suit, said Willer Chen, senior research analyst at Forsyth Barr Asia.

Tencent and Baidu also advanced, as did Tokyo-listed Softbank, which owns a large stake in Alibaba. By mid-morning, the Hang Seng Index had risen by more than 2%, while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 was up by just under half a percentage point. Taipei and Bangkok also saw gains, while Shanghai and Sydney posted small losses.

Meanwhile, US stock indices finished modestly lower on Tuesday, shrugging off a better-than-expected consumer confidence reading. The closely watched consumer confidence index increased in March to 104.2 from 103.4 last month, The Conference Board said in a statement. "While consumers feel a bit more confident about what's ahead, they are slightly less optimistic about the current landscape," said Ataman Ozyildirim, senior director for economics at The Conference Board.

All three major US indices declined, with the S&P 500 losing 0.2%. The gains followed last week's rout over concerns that the turmoil in the sector, which sparked the UBS takeover of Credit Suisse, could hit other major institutions, such as German giant Deutsche Bank.

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