US president-elect Donald Trump held a meeting with prominent Chinese entrepreneur Jack Ma in New York. Ma said that Alibaba has the potential to create thousands of jobs by letting US businesses sell to China. Both Trump and Ma agreed that Sino-US relationship needs to be strengthened.

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Alibaba platform is reported to account for up to 80 percent online purchases in China. Alibaba's CEO said that farmers and small clothing makers in the US Midwest should take this opportunity to reach out people in China.

The Chinese company's spokesman Bob Christie said that Alibaba may aid in creating one million new jobs over the next five years as small businesses will need to hire more people for dealing with Alibaba. Trump said that he had a "great meeting."

Alibaba went public in the US in 2014, making history as the largest IPO. It had raised $25 billion in the market. The company reported $15.6 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016.

Trump had earlier warned that he is likely to impose punitive tariffs on imports from China. He has also been a vocal critic of various Chinese practices including its monetary policy. However, following the meeting with Ma, he said, "Jack and I are going to do some great things."

Trump also called Ma a "great, great entrepreneur," while Ma said that Trump is "smart" and "open-minded." Ma added that Trump agreed that the ties between the two countries "should be strengthened, should be more friendly and do better."

Tagsdonald trump, Jack Ma, Alibaba