Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba reported that net profit in the first quarter plummeted by 88% due to the aftermath of the new coronavirus infection (corona19).

According to today's (23rd) AFP and Reuters, Alibaba's net profit in the first quarter of this year was 3.26 billion yuan (approximately 500 billion won), which was significantly less than 25.8 billion yuan (approximately 4 trillion won) of the same period last year. .

"It's because of investment losses," Alibaba said.

However, Corona 19 also affected profitability deterioration, as Alibaba agreed to waive some fees to support merchants in the online shopping mall Tianmao (Ten Mall, T Mall) in February.

Alibaba's sales in the first quarter were 1143.11 billion yuan (about 19.81 trillion won), up 22% from the same period last year.

Alibaba's share price fell more than 5% on the New York stock market that day after earnings were released.

Maggie Wu, Chief Financial Officer of Alibaba, said, "Corona 19 has had a negative impact on most of Alibaba's core business since the end of January, but has been steadily recovering since March."

(Photo = Getty Image Korea)