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On August 23, Alibaba Group issued an announcement, announcing that it would add Hong Kong as its primary listing place, and would be listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on August 28, becoming a company with dual primary listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. The announcement also showed that Alibaba's dual primary listing in Hong Kong does not involve new share issuance and financing.

On August 22, Alibaba held a shareholders' meeting to approve Alibaba's proposal to seek a Hong Kong main listing conversion. Earlier, Alibaba Group Chief Financial Officer Xu Hong said in an Alibaba earnings conference call held this month that after the shareholders' meeting passed the proposal, Alibaba expects to strive to complete the Hong Kong main listing conversion by the end of August 2024. "As for how to access the Hong Kong Stock Connect in the future, we still have to fulfill some procedures under the different rules of each exchange. We should follow the procedures and it can be achieved."

This also means that Alibaba is getting closer to being connected to the Hong Kong Stock Connect. If Alibaba is connected to the Hong Kong Stock Connect, it will create more convenience for mainland investors to directly invest in Alibaba.

Alibaba is now in the status of "secondary listing" in Hong Kong stocks. Previously, Alibaba's process of seeking a conversion to a primary listing in Hong Kong has experienced twists and turns. In 2019, Alibaba was listed in Hong Kong for the second time. After that, Alibaba announced in July 2022 that the board of directors had authorized the group's management to submit an application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, intending to add Hong Kong as a primary listing place. After the Hong Kong Stock Exchange completes the review process, Alibaba will be dual-listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. However, in November 2022, Alibaba announced that due to the need to formulate a new employee stock ownership plan, it would not complete the primary listing by the end of 2022 as originally planned. It was not until May 14, 2024 that Alibaba mentioned it again in its 2024 fiscal year performance report: "We have been preparing for a primary listing in Hong Kong, and currently expect to complete the conversion by the end of August 2024."

Morgan Stanley predicted in a recent report that Alibaba is likely to be included in the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Stock Connect after completing the dual-primary listing conversion, which could happen as early as September.Morgan Stanley believes that Alibaba's dual-class share structure will no longer be an obstacle to inclusion in the Hong Kong Stock Connect. After the Hong Kong Stock Exchange relaxes the secondary listing requirements in 2021, ZTO Express has become the first company with dual-class share structure to be included in the Hong Kong Stock Connect on March 13, 2024. Morgan Stanley analyzed that if Alibaba completes its primary listing by the end of August, it is expected that the inclusion of the Hong Kong Stock Connect will be confirmed on September 4, announced on September 6, and take effect when the market opens on September 9.

If successfully connected to the Hong Kong Stock Connect, Alibaba will further expand its investor base from mainland China and other parts of Asia and enhance the liquidity of Alibaba's Hong Kong stocks.Morgan Stanley predicts that based on the situation of Meituan, Xiaomi, Li Auto and Xpeng Motors, after being included in the Hong Kong Stock Connect, southbound funds may add about US$12 billion of incremental inflows to Alibaba's Hong Kong stocks in the first six months. In the long run, the proportion of southbound funds holding shares may stabilize at more than 10%.

Alibaba's first quarter financial report for fiscal year 2025 shows that Alibaba's revenue for the quarter was 243.24 billion yuan, compared with 234.156 billion yuan in the same period last year, a year-on-year increase of 4%. Operating profit was 35.989 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 15%. Alibaba Cloud achieved revenue and profit growth, and adjusted EBITA profit increased by 155% year-on-year, but the revenue and profit growth rate of e-commerce business continued to be under pressure.

Alibaba's management said in the earnings call that in addition to core businesses such as Taobao Tmall and Alibaba International Digital Commerce, loss-making businesses such as Alibaba Local Life are improving their monetization capabilities and operational efficiency. It is expected that most of the loss-making businesses will gradually break even within 1 to 2 years and gradually begin to contribute to scale profitability.

According to the forecast of LiveReport big data, 33 stocks are expected to officially enter the Hong Kong Stock Connect on September 9, 2024. They are: Sunshine Insurance, Ka Wah International, Cha Baidao, Hang Lung Group, Morimatsu International, Alibaba-SW, Auto Street, Vanke Cloud, Dashi Holdings, Cloud Music, Dah Sing Bank Group, China Ship Leasing, SF Express, East Sunshine Changjiang Pharmaceutical, Dekang Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Dalipu Holdings, Sinopec Refining and Chemical Engineering, Laopu Gold, COFCO Packaging, Maifushi, Delin Holdings, Zhongqing Holdings, Jiangnan Buyi, Quzhi Group, Tianli International Holdings, Jiuxing Holdings, Haotian International Construction, Zhixing Automotive Technology, Power Development, Yisou Technology, US-China Jiahe, Shengneng Group, and MONGOL MINING.