Chinese Regulators and Tech Giant Alibaba

Tech giant Alibaba is one of the most famous companies not only in China other countries as well. However, it was a tough day for the tech giant. It is worth mentioning that, shares of Alibaba in Hong Kong were in the spotlight once again on Monday, after Chinese regulators ordered its affiliate Ant Group to rectify its business.

Importantly, by the end of the day, shares of Alibaba listed in the city fell 7.98%, adding to losses for the firm. As a reminder, the stock also declined last Thursday following reports that regulators will probe the tech giant for suspected monopolistic behavior. 

Moreover, shares of other Hong Kong-listed Chinese tech firms also declined on December 28. Shares of Tencent dropped 6.65% while Meituan fell 6.88%. This is not the end of the story as China’s largest chipmaker SMIC also saw its stock in Hong Kong fell 4.2%.

Importantly, the broader Hang Seng Tech index fell 4.26% on the day to 7,795.78. 

Alibaba and legal challenges

As stated above, shares of Alibaba fell about 8% amid pressure from Chinese regulators. Let’s have a look at other interesting information as well.

Notably, stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Monday, as the final trading week of 2020 kicked off. 

Interestingly, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 added 0.74% to close at 26,854.03. At the same time, the Topix index gained 0.54% to end its trading day at 1,788.04.

Also, South Korea’s Kospi index closed fractionally higher at 2,808.60.

Now, let’s have a look at the mainland Chinese stocks. Notably, the Shanghai Composite was largely unchanged at 3,397.29. In the meantime, the Shenzhen Component added 0.193% to 14,014.10.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 0.27% to close at 26,314.63. 

According to the country’s National Bureau of Statistics, profits at Chinese industrial firms in November rose 15.5% as compared with a year earlier. 

It is worth noting that, markets in Australia and New Zealand are closed on Monday for a holiday.

The U.S. President Donald Trump made the right decision by signing a Covid relief and government funding bill days after he suggested he would block it. This decision comes at a time when millions of Americans are struggling to cope with problems. Importantly, it took a lot of time and effort to reach an agreement. Moreover, lawmakers and the White House should join forces to support people in the future.