Alibaba Posts Surprise Loss as China Covid Curbs Take a Toll

(Bloomberg) — Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. reported a surprise loss after quarterly revenue barely grew as China’s rigid Covid controls continued to sap consumer sentiment.

China’s e-commerce leader reported a net loss of 20.6 billion yuan ($2.9 billion) versus projections for a profit of almost the same amount. Alibaba marked down the value of investments across a portfolio that spans Didi Global Inc. to Indonesia’s GoTo. The company also greenlighted a $15 billion expansion of an existing $25 billion buyback program and extended it to 2025.