China plans to hold a symposium with the country's big tech companies to show them that the regulatory storm will end to support the economy, according to multiple reports.
China plans to end a year-long regulatory storm against tech giants as the Covid outbreak delivers a new blow to the economy, according to multiple media reports today.
The country plans to hold a symposium with big tech companies, raising hopes that the government will end its sweeping regulatory crackdown on the tech sector and give Internet platforms a bigger role to help bolster the sluggish economy, the South China Morning Post reported today.
The symposium has been scheduled to take place after the Labor Day holiday to reassure business executives that regulators will no longer require rectifications or impose surprise fines, the report said, citing two people familiar with the matter. This year, the holiday runs from April 30 to May 4.
The country's major big tech companies, including Alibaba, Tencent, Meituan, and ByteDance, have been invited, according to the report.
A joint regulatory meeting will also be held this weekend to bring all regulators on the same page regarding a new decision by the Chinese government to ease aggressive actions, the report said.
The key message to tech companies is that the state wants them to grow and play a role in Beijing's efforts to support an economy affected by Covid-19 controls, for example by issuing consumer vouchers, according to the report.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal cited people familiar with the matter as saying that China's top Internet regulator will meet with the tech giant next week to discuss the regulatory campaign.
The meeting is a sign that officials recognize the toll regulation is taking on the private sector at a time when China's economic outlook is becoming increasingly blurred by strict measures, the people said.
Regulators are planning to hold off on new rules limiting the amount of time young people spend on mobile apps, the report said.
The reports come after a meeting of China's top policymaking body today sent the strongest signals of support for the economy this year, including for the previously battered platform economy.
The Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party held a meeting on April 29 to analyze and study the current economic situation and economic work, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
The meeting stressed that China needs to control the Covid epidemic and also stabilize the economy and achieve safe development.
China wants to promote the healthy development of the platform economy, complete special rectification of the platform economy, implement regular supervision and introduce specific measures to support their standardized and healthy development, the conference said.
Regulatory pressures have seen the tech giants' market caps shrink sharply over the course of the past year, and electric vehicle stocks have been sold off just as badly despite being seen as safe-havens among them.
Shares of Hong Kong-listed tech giants jumped after today's noon Xinhua report, with Alibaba up 15.69 percent, Meituan up 15.51 percent and Tencent up 11.07 percent.
Electric vehicle stocks also rose in general, with Nio (NYSE: NIO, HKG: 9866) up 6.67 percent, Xpeng Motors (NYSE: XPEV, HKG: 9868) up 7.07 percent and Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI, HKG: 2015) up 8.77 percent.
EV stocks surge in Hong Kong as top meeting vows to stabilize China's economy
