Alibaba.com, BAWTC Co-launch New Site to Share Content and Marketing Power


Hong Kong, China / Oakland (CA), USA - December 17, 2001- The Bay Area World Trade Center (BAWTC), and Alibaba.com have announced the launch of a new co-branded B2B channel promoting new trade opportunities in the important San Francisco Bay Area. The new co-branded site, will be integrated with Alibaba's Trade Leads and marketplace platform system, and establishes yet another meeting point for Alibaba's China Suppliers and US buyers.


The Bay Area, with more than $100 billion in annual regional trade, is one of the largest trading hubs in the US. The co-branded site will provide an effective online link between businesspeople from the greater San Francisco Bay Area, one of the world's most powerful regional economies, and Alibaba's membership base of over 900,000 members.


The B2B portal can be accessed through bawtc.alibaba.com, and offers Bay Area businesses the opportunity to find trade leads and promote their products and services online. From a single destination, BAWTC companies can now interact with Alibaba's 900,000 buyers and sellers from over 200 countries, and access relevant information and services in 27 vertical industries. The portal will highlight Alibaba's community of premium China Suppliers, and provide wide exposure and promotional opportunities in the important US import-export market.


With China's recent entry to the WTO, this marketplace is well positioned to become a practical and effective gateway for Bay Area enterprises to find new business partners and products from China.

About BAWTC

With more than $100 billion in trade flowing annually through the Bay Area region, the Bay Area World Trade Center (BAWTC) represents one of the largest hubs in the United States of America. Strategically located at the Port of Oakland, the BAWTC serves the greater nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, one of the most powerful regional economies in the world.


The BAWTC assists small and medium-sized firms with their import and export needs and provides sourcing searches for California producers, buyer searches for foreign products/services, business matching appointments and all types of delegation support. BAWTC's global network includes variety of contacts in business, government, non-governmental organizations, international chambers of commerce and trade associations.


Most BAWTC members tend to originate from emerging international businesses and those interested in exploring global opportunities. The BAWTC strengthens the process of global commerce, giving its members access to resources, services, programs, and products from 338 World Trade Centers in almost 100 countries.

For more information on the Bay Area World Trade Center, visit www.bawtc.com.

About Alibaba.com

Alibaba.com is the world's largest online business-to-business marketplace for global trade and host to China's leading domestic B2B trade community. Alibaba's vision is to become the number one destination for buyers and sellers at small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME's) to find trade opportunities, promote their businesses and conduct transactions online. Alibaba.com's web properties have over 900,000 registered members from over 200 countries. Alibaba.com was selected by Forbes magazine as "Best of the Web: B2B" and selected as the world's best B2B site by readers of the Far Eastern Economic Review.


For more information, please visit www.alibaba.com or email to alibaba@alibaba-inc.com.