Hong Kong - Alibaba.com, a large e-commerce portal in China, has raised $1.5 billion in its initial public offering (IPO) of shares on the Hong Kong stock market, and saw its share price nearly triple in trading on Tuesday.

The company priced 858.9 million shares at $1.74 per share; Alibaba.com stock closed at $5.09 in Hong Kong today.

Alibaba.com counts 24.6 million registered users, and 255,000 paying members.

The company posted a net profit of $39.2 million for the first half of 2007.

Yahoo holds a 39% stake in Alibaba.com parent Alibaba Group, and purchased about $100 million in Alibaba.com shares, the Associated Press reported.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3czx8w (AP)

http://www.alibaba.com