(Reuters) - Chinese online retailer JD.com ( JD ) on Thursday reported first-quarter revenue that beat market estimates, as deep price cuts helped boost sales that had been hit hard by cautious customer sentiment.

U.S.[listed shares of the company rose about 3.5% in premarket trading.

JD.com ( JD ) and bigger rival Alibaba Group have been lowering prices and offering discounts to maintain market share in the world's second largest economy where consumers are gravitating toward low-cost, discount-focused platforms. JD.com ( JD ) has also been growing its logistics, electronics and home appliances divisions. On Tuesday, Alibaba reported an 86% drop in quarterly profit, primarily due to valuation change from equity investment, though it beat revenue estimates.

Net revenue rose 7% to 260 billion yuan ($36.02 billion) in January-March, versus the 257.72 billion yuan average of 21 analyst estimates compiled by LSEG. Analysts see full-year sales growing 6.7%.

JD.com ( JD ) reported net income attributable to shareholders of 7.13 billion yuan, up nearly 14% from 6.26 billion yuan a year earlier.

($1 = 7.2182 Chinese yuan renminbi)