A unit of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd will buy a minority stake in Singapore Post Ltd for S$312.5 million ($249 million) to help set up an international e-commerce logistics business.

Alibaba will buy a 10.35 percent stake in Singapore Post (SingPost) in the enlarged capital of the firm, the companies said in a joint statement. After the deal is complete, Alibaba will become the second-biggest shareholder in SingPost after Singapore Telecommunications Ltd, whose stake will fall to about 23 percent from nearly 26 percent.

"We see considerable strategic advantages, such as the creation of new relationships and opportunities for strategic cooperation with the Alibaba Group," Lim Ho Kee, SingPost's chairman said in the joint statement.

SingPost has been boosting its e-commerce revenue to offset a weak postal business, helping drive up its shares by about 18 percent so far this year.