Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) shares are trading higher Monday ahead of first-quarter GDP data in China. The Hong Kong stock exchange jumped to an eight-week high ahead of the print.
What To Know: The Chinese government is expected to release first-quarter GDP and March activity data on Tuesday, per Reuters.
Most economists are expecting GDP to have climbed in the quarter as the country pulled back on its COVID-19 restrictions.
“We have seen dividends from COVID policy shift on consumption and investment, including stronger than expected exports,” said China Merchants Securities economist Zhang Yiping.
According to a Reuters poll of economists, GDP growth is expected to have increased to 4%, up from 2.9% a quarter earlier. If economists are right, the number would mark the fastest growth rate since the first quarter of 2022.
What Else: Separate reports indicate that Alibaba, along with other major e-commerce players in China, are making changes to their retail business operations in order to drive increased growth.
Alibaba is reportedly set to reorganize its Taobao (consumer-to-consumer) and Tmall (business-to-consumer) businesses by establishing three central departments based on consumption trends and user demand scenarios.
Related Link: Alibaba, JD.Com Overhaul E-Commerce Operations To Drive Growth
BABA Price Action: Alibaba shares were up 2.22% at $96.65 at the time of writing, according to Benzinga Pro.
Photo: courtesy of Alibaba.
