China tightens political control of Internet giants

Xi Jinping, center, walks past wreaths of flowers and a member of an honour guard after he paid respects to the Monument to the People's Heroes in Beijing. Anti-monopoly and data security crackdowns starting in late 2020 have shaken China’s Internet industry, which flourished for two decades with little regulation. — AP

BEIJING: The ruling Communist Party is tightening political control over China’s Internet giants and tapping their wealth to pay for its ambitions to reduce reliance on US and European technology.

Anti-monopoly and data security crackdowns starting in late 2020 have shaken the industry, which flourished for two decades with little regulation. Investor jitters have knocked more than US$1.3 trillion (RM5.43 trillion) off the total market value of e-commerce platform Alibaba, games and social media operator Tencent and other tech giants.