Alibaba appeals to Donald Trump, says its role is to support America

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. offered reassurances that its presence in the US is benign, in a bid to remove itself from the cross hairs of President Donald Trump.

“As the world’s largest e-commerce platform, Alibaba’s primary commercial focus in the US is to support American brands, retailers, small businesses and farmers to sell to consumers and trade partners in China as well as other key markets around the world,” Chief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang said on an earnings call.

“We believe global trade will continue, and Alibaba’s active pursuit of our mission ‘to make it easy to do business anywhere’ is fully aligned with the interests of both China and the US,” he said.