Day: June 22, 2025

Advertisement The restructuring “marks a strategic upgrade from an e-commerce platform to a comprehensive consumer platform”, Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu Yongming wrote in a letter to employees on Monday. “Moving forward, we will increasingly optimise our business models and organisational structures from the user’s perspective to create richer, higher-quality consumer experiences.” Alibaba, the business conglomerate founded by billionaire Jack Ma, owns the South China Morning Post. Following the changes, Ele.me CEO Fan Yu and Fliggy CEO Zhuang Zhuoran will report directly to Jiang Fan, who leads Alibaba’s E-commerce Business Group.…

For over two decades, Chinese companies have been known to demonstrate a notable risk tolerance, often venturing into overseas markets that Western counterparts avoided. Advertisement This is evident in the conflict-ridden yet mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo, where Chinese mining enterprises had in the past decade made vast investments as foreign-owned companies exited, positioning the country as the world’s largest producer of cobalt and second-largest producer of copper. This pattern of investment in high-risk environments was also true for countries in the Sahel such as Niger, Mali and Guinea that…

China sharply criticised the United States and Israel on Sunday, calling on them to de-escalate their conflict with Iran, prioritise civilian safety and adhere to international law as Mideast anxiety intensified following the US attack on three Iranian nuclear facilities using massive “bunker buster” bombs. Advertisement Washington has violated Iranian sovereignty, “exacerbated tensions in the Middle East and dealt a heavy blow to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime”, said China’s United Nations ambassador Fu Cong at a UN Security Council emergency meeting, its third in 10 days. “The international community…

A veteran of international finance, Jin Liqun is president and chair of the board of directors at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral development lender headquartered in Beijing and established in 2016. He has been closely involved in the Bank’s evolution since its inception, and was elected to a second and final five-year term in 2020. Advertisement Jin was among the first Chinese officials to gain direct experience in international finance in the 1980s, serving as alternate executive director for China at the World Bank. His distinguished career…

A bill to restrict property ownership in Texas by Chinese citizens has become law, more than two years after it was first introduced, setting up what could be a prolonged legal and political battle as critics plan to file a suit challenging it. Advertisement Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, announced on Saturday that he had signed the bill, which also targets nationals from Iran, North Korea and Russia, into law. Abbott expressed support for the bill in February, writing on social media that the legislation “would prohibit hostile foreign entities…

South Korea is set to become the latest country to develop a sixth-generation fighter, according to a senior aerospace executive. Advertisement Shin Dong-hak, vice-president of international business development at Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), said in an interview at the Paris Air Show that the technology it was showcasing at the event – including 4.5-generation fighters and unmanned aerial vehicles – would “ultimately” become “key elements” of the switch to sixth-generation fighters. Meanwhile, in the United States, US President Donald Trump has confirmed that the US will go ahead with its…

China condemned the United States for its weekend attacks on Iranian nuclear sites, describing them as serious violations of international law. Advertisement In a brief statement on Sunday night, the Chinese foreign ministry said the bombing of the facilities, which were under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency, seriously violated the United Nations Charter and its principles. It called on all parties, especially Israel, to cease fire as soon as possible, ensure the safety of civilians and start dialogue. “China is willing to work with the international community…

The US will remain focused on containing China in the Indo-Pacific, despite short-term deployment distractions caused by its direct involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict, according to analysts. Advertisement Before the strikes, the United States had repositioned forces for the conflict, including shifting assets away from the Indo-Pacific. Last week, the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz cancelled a planned port call in Vietnam to support the USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group in the Middle East. The redeployment of the Nimitz is the fourth of its kind in the past year, prompting…