China’s Dangdang.com Shifts From Online Book Sales As Net Losses Increase

Chinese B2C e-commerce website Dangdang.com published its financial report for the fourth quarter and the entire year of 2012, stating that its total operating revenue increased by 31% year-on-year to CNY1.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012; while it made net losses of CNY120 million during the same period.

For the entire year of 2012, Dangdang.com’s total operating revenue reached CNY5.19 billion, an increase of 44% compared with 2011. At the same time, its net losses were CNY440 million, while the number was CNY230 million in 2011. Dangdang.com said the losses were mainly attributed to expense increases in the performance of contracts, technology, and administration.

For sales statistics, Dangdang.com’s general merchandise business realized a total trade value of CNY1.15 billion in the fourth quarter, exceeding the sales of books, which were CNY930 million. This is also the first time that the company’s general merchandise sales exceeded its book sales.

At the beginning of 2012, Dangdang.com, which formerly focused on the online sales of books, announced its open platform strategy and introduced third-party vendors to enlarge its general merchandise business, aiming to transform from a books and audio and video products provider to a comprehensive e-commerce operator.