[Source: Reuters]

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (9988.HK) said it planned to hire 15,000 people this year.

However, dismissing rumours circulating on Chinese social media in recent days that the company planned to cut 20% of its workers.

In a post on the firm’s official Weibo account, Alibaba said that among the 15,000, more than 3,000 people would be newly-graduated students.

“Talent movement is what all enterprises have been doing. In Alibaba, talents have been coming in and out, moving normally,” the company said in the Weibo post.

Alibaba’s cloud unit has started a round of downsizing that will impact 7% of the staff as it streamlines its business in preparation for an IPO, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.