Benzinga | Oct 29, 2021 05:00PM EDT

Alibaba Cements E-Commerce Market Positioning In Eastern Europe

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) unquestionably is a behemoth in the Chinese e-commerce market. It now appears the company is making serious inroads into the vibrant e-commerce market in Europe.

What Happened: Alibaba was among the top three e-commerce companies selling consumer goods in eastern Europe in 2020, the CNBC reported, citing Euromonitor International. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) did not figure in the list of top 10 in the region, the report said.

For Alibaba, it was a climb down from the top position it held in 2019. Sneaking past Alibaba and taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic were the Polish online shopping site Allegro and Russian e-commerce company Wildberries.

Amazon, however, ruled the roost in western Europe, which comprises advanced economies of the region such as France and Spain, data from Euromonitor showed.

Although it maintained pole position in the region, its share of the overall market reportedly remained nearly static at 19.3% in 2020.

Related Link: What To Expect When Alibaba Reports Its Q2 Results

Alibaba Betting Big On Europe: Alibaba is prepping to use its Singles Day shopping festive to take advantage of its positioning in the continent and the huge opportunity presented by the local market.

Alibaba operates AliExpress, an e-commerce website meant for selling to consumers outside of China. The company has in recent years promoted the Singles Day shopping festival through AliExpress.

AliExpress is also looking to lure in local merchants in Europe to its platform through the subsidies it offers, CNBC said, citing Li Dawei, head of AliExpress Supply Chain.

Targeting the growing e-commerce market in Europe is likely to offer a cushion for Alibaba, which is currently seeing a slowdown in China. The domestic economy is experiencing a weaker consumer spending environment amid floundering macroeconomic fundamentals.

Related Link: Why These 2 Alibaba Analysts Expect Muted Near-Term, Positive Long-Term Prospects

Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma. Benzinga file photo by Dustin Blitchok.