Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's plans for a giant initial public offering in New York highlight vast potential for e-commerce in China - and the weak link the logistics industry must fix if explosive growth projections are to be reached.The ageing warehouses that supply goods to customers across the world's second-largest economy are already creaking under the strain, lacking the automation and state-of-the-art technology that has fuelled the rise in the United States and Europe of Amazon.com Inc. By 2020 China's e-commerce sector will be larger than those of the U.S., Britain, Japan, German and France combined, KPMG said in a recent report.To cope with the China surge, as much as $2.5 trillion may need to be invested in buying land and constructing warehouses alone over the next decade and a half, according to one builder. That's drawing the attention of global private equity firms like Blackstone Group LP and Carlyle Group LP as they seek to benefit from an anticipated investment boom."Over the next 15 to 20 years, the real cost of building warehouses is going to be staggering," said Jeff Schwarz, co-founder of Global Logistic Properties Ltd (GLP), the biggest foreign builder of logistics facilities in China.
Amazon.com, Inc. (Amazon.com) serves consumers through its retail websites and focus on selection, price, and convenience. Shares of AMZN traded higher by 1.36% or $3.92/share to $292.24. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $258.34 and as high as $408.06. On average, 4758470 shares of AMZN exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 4062984.
The Blackstone Group L.P. (Blackstone) is a manager of private capital and provider of financial advisory services. Shares of BX fell by 1.18% or $-0.34/share to $28.52. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $19.15 and as high as $35.39. On average, 5994350 shares of BX exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 6021787.
Shares of CG traded higher by 3.9% or $1.18/share to $31.45. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $23.85 and as high as $39.38. On average, 808176 shares of CG exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 1025941.
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