Alibaba's Pakistan E-Commerce Wing Daraz Joins Downsizing Bandwagon As Slowdown Hits

Alibaba Group Holding Limited's BABA Daraz Group slashed 11% of jobs to counter the weakness in online commerce, joining a growing roster of tech names.
The Pakistani company, which Alibaba snapped from Rocket Internet in 2018, has quintupled active shoppers to over 15 million over the past five years, Bloomberg reports.
But in 2022, that pace decelerated after the Ukraine war and soaring inflation disrupted supply chains and economies, CEO Bjarke Mikkelsen said in an internal memo.
Also Read: Alibaba Focuses On South Korea For International E-Commerce With Best Pricing Tactics
Daraz in Pakistan represents Alibaba's overseas foray along with other private firms, including Lazada Group SA and Trendyol in Turkey, .
In 2021, Daraz shared plans to double orders annually over the next five years, courtesy of its position in South Asian markets.
Alibaba reported second-quarter FY22 revenue growth of 3% year-on-year to $29.12 billion, missing the consensus of $29.45 billion.
International commerce revenue rose by 4% Y/Y to $2.21 billion.
International Commerce (8% of revenue): The combined number of orders of Lazada, AliExpress, Trendyol, and Daraz declined by 3% Y/Y due to the declining orders of Lazada and AliExpress due to change in the European Union's VAT rules, depreciation of the Euro against the U.S dollar and ongoing supply chain and logistics disruptions due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
In 2022, Alibaba rival Sea Limited SEA slashed 7,000 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, in the past six months as it fights to stem ballooning losses and win back investors.
Price Action: BABA shares traded higher by 1.47% at $107.13 premarket on the last check Tuesday.

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