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Jack Ma, the billionaire founder and executive chairman of the Alibaba Group, met with US president-elect Donald Trump on Monday, and Trump said they had a "great meeting".
"We had a great meeting, and a great, great entrepreneur, one of the best in the world, and he loves this country, and he loves China." Trump said from Trump Tower in New York City. "Jack and I are going to do some great things."
Jack Ma, right, the billionaire founder and executive chairman of the Alibaba Group, met with US president-elect Donald Trump on Monday. Photo: Agencies
Ma and Trump met with reporters briefly after the meeting and said they discussed plans to create 1 million US jobs by allowing small and medium-sized businesses to sell to China through the company's platforms.
"We're focused on small business," Ma told reporters.
The meeting was planned to focus on the Chinese e-commerce company's US expansion plans, according to spokespeople for both Alibaba and Trump. Ma had planned to be in New York City on Monday and the scheduling worked out for the meeting, a source told CNBC.
This was the first meeting of the US president-elect with a high profile businessman from China, following a barrage of tough rhetoric and actions, including threats to impose a 45 percent tariff on Chinese goods and selection of China critics for trade positions.
The meeting comes amid tensions between China and the incoming Trump administration. Trump has repeatedly criticized China for its economic policies and accused the country of stealing jobs away from the US. Trump also has said he may raise tariffs on Chinese goods sold in the US.
"We also think that the China and USA relationship should be strengthened — should be more friendly," Ma said. "The door is open for discussing the relationship and trade issues. I think the president-elect is very smart, he's very open-minded to listen. I told him my ideas about how to improve trade, especially to improve small business, cross border trade."
Ma told reporters at Trump Tower that the two discussed allowing US products such as "garments, wine and fruit" to be sold on the platform. Additionally, Ma said that the discussion included talk on the need for China and US to improve their relationship.
Though details of the meeting as to what was specifically discussed remain sketchy, it is a positive signal for China-US trade relations under Trump, following the recent turbulence, according to Bai Ming, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation，the Global Times reported.
"This is a sign that Trump is leaving the door open for pragmatic cooperation with Chinese firms, which he thinks could help the US economy and create jobs," Bai said.
Bai said Trump's tough rhetoric on China was meant for voters and might have been aimed at gaining some leverage in future trade negotiations with China, but "he is a businessman and if he sees an opportunity that could benefit the US economy, he would take it."
And for Alibaba, as it looks to expand its business in the US, Monday's meeting was a positive step for the company to "pave the way" for its business plans under a Trump administration, according to Mei Xinyu, an associate researcher with the Ministry of Commerce.
"Alibaba is based in China, but has a worldwide platform; the company has to handle its relations with the US government well, because it's a very important market for the Chinese tech firm," Mei said on Monday.
It is important that Alibaba strikes a balance between expanding overseas and strengthening its base in China, Mei noted.
Bai said the meeting also offers a pattern that other Chinese companies can follow in expanding to the US under Trump. "They have to stress how many jobs you can create in the US in talking with Trump," he said.
Ma might have picked up some tips from Masayoshi Son of Japan's Softbank Group, a major stakeholder of Alibaba, in dealing with Trump, according to Bai. Son met with Trump in early December last year and announced a $50 billion investment in the US that aims to create 50,000 jobs.
Alibaba has been planning to expand more aggressively into the US. The company has expanded its New York City US headquarters and it has been making a push for international participation in its signature Singles' Day sale.
Alibaba, which focuses more heavily on enabling third-party sellers, had 36,446 full-time employees as of March 31, 2016, according to SEC filings. Amazon, by comparison, about 230,800 employees as of the end of 2015, though it creates other jobs through its sellers, contractors and supporting services.
Alibaba stock was up 1.5% in early trading Monday following news of the meeting.
(APD)
