- Flash flooding kills three in northern Thailand
- Kaur leads India to victory over Pakistan in Women's T20 World Cup
- Juventus held by Cagliari after late penalty drama
- In France's Marseille, teen 'stabbed 50 times' then burned alive
- Ruthless Gauff beats Muchova in straight sets to win China Open
- India restrict Pakistan to 105-8 in Women's T20 World Cup
- England target repeat of Pakistan Test whitewash
- Penrith Panthers win fourth straight NRL title after downing Storm
- Weary Sinner happy for day off after battling into Shanghai last 16
- Pakistan's Masood warns England still a force without Stokes
- Madrid's Carvajal to miss several months after serious knee injury
- Two elephants die in flash flooding in northern Thailand
- Sabalenka targets world number one and Wuhan hat-trick
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Bagnaia sets 'example' with Japan MotoGP win to cut gap on Martin
- Intense Israeli bombing rocks Beirut ahead of war anniversary
- Mozambique vote: no suspense but some disillusion
- Austrian rapper channels anti-racist rage in Romani hip-hop songs
- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
- Five of the best: Pakistan-England Test thrillers
- Man sets arm on fire as marches across US mark Gaza war anniversary
- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
Alibaba full-year profit slumps nearly 60% on tech crackdown, Covid
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba said Thursday its profit fell 59 percent in the last fiscal year, joining other tech firms that reported lacklustre results while grappling with Covid-19 restrictions and a sector crackdown.
China's economy has been battered by the fallout from strict Covid curbs including lockdowns and transport restrictions that have kept consumers home, pushed up unemployment, and tangled supply chains.
Alibaba has also had to contend with a wide-ranging regulatory crackdown on alleged anti-competitive practices by China's tech giants.
The Hangzhou-based group cited "macro challenges that impacted supply chains and consumer sentiment" as it announced a loss of 16.2 billion yuan ($2.56 billion) for the January-March quarter.
It warned it would not give forward-looking financial guidance due to Covid risks and uncertainty.
Alibaba has seen its market value plummet since Beijing launched its sweeping crackdown in 2020 on some of China's largest home-grown companies.
The crackdown included a last-minute cancellation of a planned IPO by Alibaba's financial arm Ant Group -- which would have been the world's largest public offering at the time.
The company was also hit with a record $2.75 billion fine for alleged unfair practices last year.
But Alibaba Group said Thursday its revenue grew around nine percent in the last quarter to 204.1 billion yuan, better than expected in a Bloomberg forecast.
The company's revenues -- generated mainly by its core e-commerce operations -- were up 19 percent for the fiscal year ending March 31.
Meanwhile, its full-year profit came to 62 billion yuan ($9.8 billion).
"Since mid-March 2022, our domestic businesses have been significantly affected by the Covid-19 resurgence in China, particularly in Shanghai," the company said.
"Considering the risks and uncertainties arising from Covid-19... we believe it is prudent at this time not to give financial guidance as we typically do at the start of the fiscal year," it added.
Alibaba's earnings follow a series of sluggish results by prominent Chinese tech firms, with internet giant Baidu on Thursday reporting a net loss of 885 million yuan ($140 million) in the first quarter.
Baidu's business has been "negatively impacted" by China's recent Covid-19 resurgence since mid-March, co-founder Robin Li said in a statement.
Virus-related challenges continue to pressure Baidu's near-term operations, Li said.
Tencent last Wednesday reported record low quarterly revenue growth at 135.5 billion yuan ($20.1 billion) in the first quarter, putting year-on-year expansion at nearly zero.
China is the last major economy to stick to a strict zero-Covid policy, which is now being tested by the infectious Omicron variant.
B.Godinho--PC