Alibaba (NYSE: BABA), the Chinese tech conglomerate, surprised everyone when it announced its decision to spin off its cloud-computing business. Most investors did not see that coming since the cloud business has been a highly prized segment within Alibaba, and investors expected the parent to remain in control of this business for the foreseeable future. Alibaba's cloud computing has been a rising star as it enjoys the tailwind of a growing cloud-computing industry in China.