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Alibaba Rolls Out Services to Aid Digitization of U.S. SMBs

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Alibaba Group Holding Limited (BABA - Free Report) has rolled out three new services, namely, Alibaba.com Freight, Alibaba.com Payment Terms and Alibaba.com Online Trade Shows USA.

The company strives to help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the United States weather the impacts of coronavirus-induced economic disruptions with the latest move.

We note that the new services are focused on helping the SMBs digitize their businesses by going online. This is very crucial for the survival of businesses during the outbreak as fear of contracting the virus has put social-distancing protocols in place.

The latest move highlights Alibaba’s continued efforts toward extending support to several nations in their fight against COVID-19.

We believe these endeavors will steadily help the company win investor confidence during the coronavirus-led crisis across the world.

Services at a Glance

With the three new services, the China e-commerce giant aims at providing access working capital, shipping and logistics services and most importantly supply and demand to the U.S. SMBs.

Notably, Alibaba.com Freightis an ocean and air shipping solution with user-friendly interface that helps businesses in tracking and managing their ocean and air freight in real time online. Further, the service is backed by Freightos, which is a digital freight marketplace that aids in bulk shipment arrangement.

Alibaba.com Payment Terms is the first of its kind for SMBs. It is a digitized trade finance solution integrated with a cross-border B2B e-commerce marketplace. It helps buyers to pay for their ordered goods for up to 60 days after they are shipped. This will aid businesses, which have to make upfront payment by using any other service, by maintaining their cashflows.

Meanwhile, Alibaba.com Online Trade Shows USA is a series of specific live-streaming experiences based on manufacturers and wholesalers in the United States. These shows are aimed at connecting sellers with buyersin real time for transactions.

To Conclude

An expanding services portfolio has been the key catalyst for Alibaba.

The above-mentioned facilities and features of the newly-launched services are expected to help Alibaba gain strong momentum among the SMBs.

Moreover, the benefits being offered by these services are likely to bolster their adoption rate which in turn will drive the top line for the company.

Further, the latest move bodes well for the company’s deepening focus onexpanding presence in the United States.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Currently, Alibaba carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

A few better-ranked stocks in the retail-wholesale sector are JD.com, Inc. (JD - Free Report) , Wayfair Inc. (W - Free Report) and eBay Inc. (EBAY - Free Report) . While JD.com and Wayfair sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), eBay carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Long-term EPS growth for JD.com, Wayfair and eBay is currently pegged at 44.22%, 23.04% and 12.4%, respectively.

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