Alibaba Group (BABA) received an A+ long-term corporate credit rating with stable outlook Thursday from Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services . The A+ rating means that the Hangzhou, China-based company has a strong-plus capacity to meet its financial commitments. S&P said the rating reflects Alibaba’s dominant market position in e-commerce in China and the company’s minimal financial leverage. But it notes a potential regulatory risk because the
China social media and mobile giant Tencent Holdings reported third-quarter earnings that missed views as revenue growth slowed due to investment decisions that analysts say should pay off down the road. Tencent (TCEHY), a chief rival to Alibaba Group (BABA), said Q3 revenue was $3.22 bil, up 28% vs. a year earlier in local currency but slightly below estimates of $3.32 billion. That was also the smallest increase in several years.
Alibaba (BABA) reportedly would consider working with eBay’s (EBAY) PayPal to expand its payment options for Chinese consumers, and would be interested in doing the same with Apple’s (AAPL) payment system, according to the Chinese e-commerce giant’s vice chairman, Joseph Tsai. Alibaba’s affiliated Alipay payments service competes with both PayPal and Apple. “If you look at our footprint of being the largest online payment company in China, and