Alibaba chief executive Daniel Zhang has urged his staff to forget about the share price slide and focus on their jobs, a day after the group’s stock price fell below its initial public offering price for the first time.
"This is not the first time that the global stock market has plunged. It is not the last time, either. I hope everyone can shift the focus from the stock market to customers. Sometimes it is a lonely journey, sticking to your principles. But we have to go through lots of ups and downs during this journey," Zhang wrote in a memo to his 35,000 employees issued on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.
Mr. Zhang also emphasised the company’s strong bank balance and assured his staff that the company had plenty of a robust cash flow and a profitable business model.
“We are methodically and aggressively pressing forward with our plans for the future. We have faith in the Chinese economy, and we have faith in our team and partners," he said.
Read More:
Why the markets are moving so wildly
Five charts that suggest Black Monday isn't the start of the next financial crisis
Bonus payments are back at their pre-economic crash levels again
Alibaba, Asia’s largest Internet company, has been sliding since its $119.15 peak in November. Its share price fell 3.5 per cent overnight dropping below its September IPO price of $68. The overnight drop was part of the sharp decline in US stock on Monday, which followed a drop in China’s stock earlier the same day.
Earlier this month, Alibaba reported its slowest quarterly revenue growth in more than three years, as revenue rose 28% to $3.26 billion in the quarter ended June 30.
Zhang became Alibaba's chief executive on May 10, 2015, replacing Jonathan Lu.
