Christchurch Airport partners Alibaba to boost micro trading in New Zealand

20 April, 2017

Christchurch International Airport signed (21-Apr-2017) a MoU with Alibaba to boost micro trading for small and regional businesses in New Zealand with Chinese visitors before, during and after their visit. The agreement covers Alibaba's existing apps such as Alitrip, Fliggy and Ant Financial's Alipay and Tmall Global. Airport CEO Malcolm Johns stated "Our goal is to build a better experience for Chinese visitors… Alipay's availability in New Zealand not only makes it easier for visitors to buy while they are here, but also unlocks value a Chinese visitor can provide to New Zealand". Mr Johns commented the "raw power" of Alibaba Group "is not its mass, but its individuality…it's about the one-on-one direct trading relationship that allows for surgical micro-exporting to develop", New Zealand "is one of the best placed countries for micro-exporting" with so many small/medium businesses. [more - original PR]