Alibaba steps back from brick-and-mortar retailing with eye on capital efficiency

Alibaba steps back from brick-and-mortar retailing with eye on capital efficiency

FILE PHOTO: A person walks past a sign of Alibaba Group during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Shanghai, China, September 1, 2022. REUTERS/Aly Song

Alibaba Group Holding, China’s largest e-commerce company, is pulling away from its forays into offline retailing, shedding noncore investments as it pivots from expansion to focus on capital efficiency.