Alibaba is expected to begin an eagerly awaited roadshow for what could be the largest ever initial public offering early in the week of September 8, and its shares could list as soon as September 18 or 19, according to a person familiar with the situation.
据知情人士透露，阿里巴巴预计在9月8日当周稍早时间为首次公开发行(IPO)举行市场热切期待的路演程序，其股票最早可能于9月18日或19日上市。这或许将成为史上规模最大的IPO。
The marketing trip, when company executives and Wall Street bankers meet with prospective investors, will kick off in Asia and include stops in Europe and the US, the person said. The Chinese ecommerce company is expected to raise about $20bn when it lists on the New York Stock Exchange, rivalling the Agricultural Bank of China’s $22.1bn IPO from July 2010, currently the largest on record. A price range for the shares is typically given just ahead of the start of the roadshow.
该知情人士称，路演将在亚洲启动，包括欧洲和美国的行程，路演行程中，阿里巴巴的高管和华尔街银行家会与未来的投资者会面。外界预计这家中国电商公司将通过在纽约证交所(NYSE)上市募得200亿美元的资金，这将与中国农业银行(ABC)在2010年7月募资221亿美元的IPO比肩，后者是史上规模最大的IPO。在路演前夕，公司通常会提供股票发行价区间。
Alibaba’s ability to make a transition to mobile has been a focus of analysts and investors as China’s tech groups square off for customers glued to smartphones. Last week, the company announced a surge in mobile revenues for the second quarter.
阿里巴巴转移到移动端的能力一直是分析师和投资者的关注焦点，目前中国的科技集团正摆开架势争夺沉迷于智能手机的顾客。上周，阿里巴巴宣布第二季度移动端收入激增。
A tenfold jump from mobile devices helped to drive overall revenues 46 per cent higher to Rmb15.8bn ($2.6bn).
其移动端收入增长了9倍，助推整体收入提高46%，达到158亿元人民币（合26亿美元）。
Alibaba also increased its internal valuation to $140bn, from $133bn earlier this month and $119bn in June, according to regulatory filings.
根据其监管申报文件，阿里巴巴的内部估值从6月的1190亿美元，提高到8月初的1130亿美元，再提至目前的1400亿美元。
“[IPO] prospectuses are very backward looking,” said Grace Su, a technology analyst at ClearBridge. “With companies that have very strong growth prospects, the roadshow will be helpful to pick management’s brain about how the future growth rates will pan out.”
“(IPO)招股书非常着眼于过去，”ClearBridge的科技产业分析师Grace Su说，“对于发展前景非常强劲的公司，市场可以通过路演征求管理层对未来增长率发展的看法。”
She added: “It will come down to your opinion on what management is saying. I am less concerned with revenue or top-line growth – the market is big enough. How Alibaba chooses to spend to generate those sales, that is the big question.
她补充：“这会归结到你如何看待管理层的话。我对收入即顶线增长不是那么担心——市场足够大。阿里巴巴会选择如何使用资金来产生那些销售，才是关键问题。”
“That is what affects your bottom line and that is what you need to speak to management about to get a sense of it.”
“那是影响你的盈亏底线的问题，是你需要通过与管理层沟通来把握的问题。”
Alibaba’s debut on the public markets slid past August as the company was completing a standard vetting process of its IPO paperwork with the US Securities and Exchange Commission amid the impending summer holidays in the US when trading typically slumps on Wall Street. The company is still in dialogue with the SEC.
阿里巴巴未能在8月成功地在公开市场上第一次亮相，原因是该公司此前忙于向美国证券交易委员会(SEC)提交IPO文件，完成标准的审核过程，而美国的暑假即将开始，华尔街的交易量通常会猛跌。目前阿里巴巴还在与SEC沟通相关事宜。
Chinese and Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs are watching closely what Alibaba will do with the proceeds of its listing. Alibaba has been carrying out a string of acquisitions recently, snapping up start-ups in whole or in part to fuel its ambitions at home and abroad.
中国和硅谷的科技企业家正密切关注阿里巴巴会如何使用上市所得。最近阿里巴巴进行了一系列收购，对一些初创公司进行了全部或者部分收购，以推进其在国内和国际的雄心。