The Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com, which connects companies with manufacturers and wholesalers, is seeing a surge in transactions involving U.S. buyers and sellers as the coronavirus forces companies online.
The business-to-business platform saw a 100 percent year-over-year increase in the number of transactions involving U.S. buyers or sellers, according to John Caplan, president of Alibaba.com in North America and Europe.
"On a COVID-adjusted basis, Alibaba.com will do more transactional volume than Uber Rides or Airbnb lodging," Caplan told Cheddar.
The company chalks up the sudden uptick to shifting business trends amid the coronavirus pandemic. The role of trade shows in introducing companies to new suppliers and products is now being played by the online marketplace.
"You can't get on an airplane and go to a trade show anymore to find the newest, most innovative supplies," Caplan said.
Specific categories have powered the surge. Personal protective equipment and materials helped drive sales, as well as increased demand for home supplies and products.
"We've also seen remarkable growth in the work-from-home categories, things like office supplies for the home, education supplies for home, but also yoga wear, comfortable clothes, outdoor furniture," Caplan said. "Americans are becoming entrepreneurial from home, but they're also home-schooling and trying to stay fit and healthy."
Many small businesses that had not yet gone digital prior to the pandemic were forced to quickly adapt.
"We're seeing a generation of change," he said. "I think what would have taken a decade has happened in two months."
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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