Alibaba Group Holding missed market expectations for first-quarter revenue on Thursday, as the company’s domestic e-commerce sales came under pressure from cautious spending by Chinese consumers in a faltering economy.

US-listed shares of the company fell about 4 per cent in premarket trading.

A halting economic recovery in China coupled with a persistently weak property market and high job insecurity levels have sapped consumer confidence and spending power in the world’s No. 2 economy, hitting global firms across the board.

Alibaba is also grappling with stiff competition from rivals including JD.com and discount-focused retail platforms such as PDD Holdings’ Pinduoduo and ByteDance-owned Douyin.

Alibaba reported revenue of 243.24 billion yuan (S$44.75 billion) for the quarter ended June 30, compared with analysts’ average estimate of 249.05 billion yuan, according to LSEG data.

Revenue at the firm’s domestic e-commerce arm fell 1 per cent even as the number of purchasers and their purchase frequency increased order growth by double digits.

Chinese e-commerce giants have had to resort to heavy discounting and promotions to attract shoppers, a move that is pressuring margins across the retail sector, from big players like Alibaba and JD.com to small businesses.

In June, sales at China’s blowout mid-year e-commerce sales festival fell for the first time ever according to third party estimates, despite major platforms’ efforts to dole out offers for an extended period to woo consumers.

Alibaba executives have maintained in recent quarters that increased purchasing and the introduction of new tools for merchants will increase advertising and customer management revenue to the platform in the future.

Alibaba in March 2023 announced the biggest shake-up in...