Mark Zuckerberg has given Mukesh Ambani a sorely needed win for Reliance Industries

With the pandemic battering assets and oil nosediving, Indian tycoon Mukesh Ambani needed a win to stem the investor exodus from Reliance Industries Ltd., the energy conglomerate he’s been trying to reinvent.

This week, Facebook Inc. and its Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg delivered just that. The U.S. social-media giant said it will buy about 10% of Reliance’s digital assets for $5.7 billion — its biggest purchase since acquiring WhatsApp six years ago. The deal will create a formidable e-commerce force to take on Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. in India, one of the world’s most competitive internet arenas.