Jan 9, 2017

Alibaba's founder makes near-Trumpian promise

Jack Ma, the billionaire founder of China's biggest online shopping site, Alibaba, was practically Trumpian in promising that his company can help support 1 million American jobs by helping U.S. companies sell to Chinese consumers.

Our take: Jack Ma might have the best of intentions, but the biggest hurdle for small businesses selling in China is the Chinese government, not the lack of a website. Everything from registering a Chinese subsidiary to gaining product approval can be prohibitively burdensome for small U.S. businesses.

By the way: Trump likely didn't help his cause in greasing the wheels to China for U.S. businesses by courting the Taiwanese.

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