In a move aimed at placating Trump, Alibaba claims to support US businesses

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has moved to ease tensions with Donald Trump, as he continues to threaten Chinese firms.

Chief executive Daniel Zhang said the online retailer's policies "are fully aligned with the interests of both China and the United States".

“As the world’s largest e-commerce platform, Alibaba’s primary commercial focus in the U.S. 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.

The comments came as Alibaba announced a better-than-expected jump in quarterly sales.

Meanwhile, the US president has promised to impose tariffs on US firms that refuse to move jobs back from overseas.

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he could exert pressure on more Chinese companies such as technology giant Alibaba after he moved to ban TikTok.

Asked at a news conference whether there were other particular China-owned companies he was considering a ban on, such as Alibaba, Trump replied: "Well, we're looking at other things, yes."
 
Trump has been piling pressure on Chinese-owned companies, such as by vowing to ban short-video app TikTok from the United States. The United States ordered its Chinese owner ByteDance on Friday to divest the US operations of TikTok within 90 days, the latest effort to ramp up pressure over concerns about the safety of the personal data it handles.

Trump, who has made changing the US-China trade relationship a central theme of his presidency, has been sharply critical of China while also praising its purchases of agriculture products such as soybeans and corn as part of a trade agreement reached late last year.

(With inputs from agencies)