Alibaba reports net loss of $2.9B in third quarter

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has reported a net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders of 20.6 billion yuan ($2.89 billion) for the third quarter, as the company grapples with an economic slowdown and an anti-monopoly crackdown.

The loss was primarily due to a "decrease in market prices of our equity investments in publicly traded companies", among other factors, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

Alibaba's performance is widely seen as a gauge of Chinese consumer sentiment, given its market dominance.

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Revenue for the three months ending September 30 was up three percent year-on-year at 207.2 billion yuan, which Chief Financial Officer Toby Xu said was achieved "in spite of the impact on consumption demand by the Covid-19 resurgence in China as well as slowing cross border commerce."

This comes after the company earlier this year reported flat quarterly revenue growth for the first time ever.

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China's major tech companies have faced economic uncertainty, Covid-19 restrictions that have depressed consumer spending, as well as heightened scrutiny from regulators in recent months.

Fellow tech titan Tencent reported on Wednesday its second quarterly drop in revenue in a row.