YNAP shares thrive on reports of potential Alibaba’s investment

Is Alibaba investing into YNAP? As the Chinese e-commerce giant assured earlier this week, not. But that doesn’t have put a halt to Yoox-Net-A-Porter group’s shares’ rally, which have marked a record high on the back of rumours of a potential investment from Alibaba.

Shares in Italian online fashion retailer Yoox Net-A-Porter closed up almost 9 percent on Monday as traders cited reported interest from Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. "There are reports Alibaba is interested in buying a stake in Yoox," one of the traders said, according to Reuters.

The traders did refer to a report on Chinese fashion website Ladymax.cn which said the Chinese conglomerate had contacted Yoox Net-a-Porter over capital cooperation, adding it did not rule out buying shares.

Although YNAP said it did not comment on market speculation, a source familiar with the matter later denied the report, assuring "It's not true."

Reported Alibaba’s interest in YNAP comes days after JD.com acquired Farfetch

Data gathered by FashionUnited Business Intelligence Unit shows that YNAP saw its shares jumped 9.24 percent on Monday, when the rumours started, and Tuesday, marking its biggest two-day rise since last September. On Wednesday, the stock reached its ceiling, closing at 25.4 euros apiece.

Alibaba’s rumoured interest in YNOP came barely days after days after JD.com acquired luxury e-commerce site Farfetch for 397 million dollars.

As requested, here is the updated one

The chart shows how Yoox Net-a-Porter shares jump as traders cite Alibaba interest

Image:Yoox, China Web