10:38 AM EST, 02/20/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Alibaba Group ( BABA ) on Thursday reported stronger-than-expected fiscal third-quarter results buoyed by a double-digit revenue gain in its cloud business.

The Chinese e-commerce giant posted adjusted earnings of 21.39 renminbi ($2.93) per American depositary share for the December quarter, up from 18.97 renminbi a year earlier. The consensus among analysts on FactSet was for 19.47 renminbi. Revenue rose 8% year over year to 280.15 billion renminbi, topping the Street's view for 278.49 billion renminbi.

"This quarter's results demonstrated substantial progress in our 'user first, (artificial intelligence)-driven' strategies and the reaccelerated growth of our core businesses," Chief Executive Eddie Wu said in a statement. Alibaba's ( BABA ) New York Stock Exchange-listed shares jumped nearly 11% in Thursday's trading session.

Revenue in the cloud intelligence business inclined 13% to 31.74 billion renminbi, "with AI-related product revenue achieving triple-digit growth for the sixth consecutive quarter," according to Wu. "Looking ahead, revenue growth at cloud intelligence group driven by AI will continue to accelerate," Wu said.

Sales in the Taobao and Tmall group segment gained 5% to 136.09 billion renminbi. Within this division, China commerce retail moved higher to 129.52 billion renminbi from 123.76 billion renminbi in the prior-year quarter, with customer management rising 9% "as a result of initiatives to enhance user experience and effective monetization," according to Wu. China commerce wholesale sales soared 24% to 6.58 billion renminbi.

The international digital commerce business climbed 32% year over year to 37.76 billion renminbi. Local services revenue increased 12% while Cainiao Smart Logistics Network ticked down by 1% in the quarter. Digital media and entertainment revenue grew 8% on an annual basis.

"We will continue to execute against our strategic priorities in e-commerce and cloud computing, including further investment to drive long-term growth," Wu said.

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