On Mar. 13, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba signed a cooperation agreement with market regulators in its home base of Hangzhou that aims to encourage development of the city’s platform economy, the official government body said on Tuesday. The deal follows Alibaba’s strategic agreement with the Hangzhou local government in January, which was interpreted as a sign that authorities were easing regulatory pressure on tech companies. China’s outgoing premier, Li Keqiang, told last week’s major central government meetings, known as the two sessions, that the country would upgrade its digital economy, step up oversight, and support the development of the platform economy in 2023. [Hangzhou Administration for Market Regulation, in Chinese]
