Google to invest in a Chinese e-commerce giant

The US-based technology giant, Google is investing $500 million in China's second-largest e-commerce player, JD.com. In response to this, Google will receive over 27 million newly issued JD.com Class A ordinary shares at an issue price of $20.29 per share.

According to the reports, the partnership aims at uniting JD.com’s experience and technology in supply chain and logistics and Google’s customer reach, data, and marketing to produce new kinds of online retail.

Philipp Schindler, Google chief business officer, shared a statement with media which said, "We are excited to partner with JD.com and explore new solutions for retail ecosystems around the world to enable helpful, personalized and frictionless shopping experiences that give consumers the power to shop wherever and however they want."

The two technology companies strive to personalize the shopping experience and reduce friction in a number of markets, including Southeast Asia.

JD.com shared that it plans to make a selection of items available for sale in places like the U.S. and Europe through Google Shopping, a service that let customers explore products on e-commerce websites and compare prices between different sellers.

JD.com currently has a valuation of around $60 billion,  and the company has partnerships with the likes of Walmart. It has invested massively in automated warehouse technology, drones and other retail and logistics technology.