“I’m 52 years old now. I’ve seen a lot of American presidential elections, and every time before the elections, they are always anti-China,” the executive chairman of the Chinese e-commerce giant said. “Many years ago [they were] anti-Soviet Union, now [they are] anti-China.”
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump frequently says America will “win” against China if he is elected president, and he accuses the country for currency manipulation and intellectual property theft. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has called out China for its “aggressive actions” in the Asia-Pacific region.
Both candidates have struck an anti-globalization tone and say they oppose a trade deal among 12 Pacific Rim nations supported by President Barack Obama. China is not a party to the deal.
Ma, an outspoken proponent of globalization, will present his plan for the Electronic World Trade Platform, an online exchange to help promote global trade, at this week’s G-20 meeting in Hangzhou, China
“We have to improve the globalization. Now this period is called the growing pain of globalization,” he told CNBC on the sidelines of the meeting. “The last 20 years, globalization was helping big companies, developed nations.”