Shares of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. rose 0.8% in morning trading Thursday, to put them on track for a fourth straight gain, even as the China-based e-commerce giant continued to face regulatory scrutiny. The stock has rallied 9.6% over the past four sessions, and has corrected 10.6% since closing at a 2-year low of $157.96 on Aug. 20. Many on Wall Street view a rise, or fall, of at least 10% to up to 20% from a significant low or high as a correction, while moves of 20% or more are considered new bull or bear markets. Chinese regulators criticized ride-hailing companies, including Alibaba’s AutoNavi, for using false promotions and making use of unqualified drivers and cars, according to a notice posted on the Ministry of Transportation’s social media account, according to a Dow Jones Newswires report. Separately on Thursday, Alibaba vowed to spend RMB100 billion, or about $15.5 billion, by 2025 for the government’s “common prosperity” drive, according to report in The Wall Street Journal, at a time that regulators were clamping down on technology giants for contributing to social divides. Alibaba’s stock has dropped 20.4% over the past three months, while the iShares MSCI China ETF has lost 13.5% and the S&P 500 has gained 7.8%.
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