Alibaba’s Jack Ma Makes First Public Appearance since October

Alibaba Group founder - Jack Ma made his first public appearance since October on Wednesday, as he spoke to a group of teachers via video, disseminating worries about his absence and giving Alibaba stock a huge boost. 

The billionaire had not appeared in public since Oct. 24, when he blasted China's regulatory system in a speech at a Shanghai forum. That led to the suspension of a blockbuster $37 billion IPO for Alibaba's financial affiliate - Ant Group. 

As he was thereafter replaced in the final episode of a reality TV show, speculation as to his whereabouts began, so the 50-second video where he participated in an online ceremony for rural teachers organised by a foundation on Wednesday really calmed the public down. The video also contained footage from January 10th of Ma visiting with colleagues a school in Tonglu county.

”Jack Ma's reappearance has given investors peace of mind after a lot of rumours, allowing them to pile into the stock which had been a laggard in the market”, said Steven Leung, sales director at brokerage UOB Kay Hian in Hong Kong.

Indeed, Alibaba's Hong Kong-listed shares jumped to finish 8.5% higher on the news. Overall, the stock has erased losses suffered after Alibaba became the target of an antitrust investigation launched last month by Chinese authorities, but still remains some 11% below levels prior to the cancellation of the Ant IPO.

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