Beijing, July 22, 2026
China has sharply criticized the European Commission's 550-million-euro fine against the online marketplace AliExpress and announced that it would support Chinese companies in defending their interests.
China's Ministry of Commerce in Beijing stated that China expresses "strong dissatisfaction and serious concern" over the European Commission's decision. It firmly rejects that the EU, citing platform regulation, is erecting digital barriers and restricting and pressuring Chinese e-commerce companies with discriminatory measures in their normal business operations in Europe.
Background of the Fine
The European Commission had imposed a fine of 550 million euros on AliExpress, which belongs to China's Alibaba Group. The background is the sale of illegal products on the platform.
According to the European Commission, some of the sellers who should have been sanctioned for selling illegal goods on the platform were not effectively penalized. Illegal products were in some cases not removed from the platform for weeks, and some of these sellers were able to continue their business activities.
Among the prohibited items offered through the platform were counterfeit clothing, unsafe toys, and dangerous cosmetics. The European Commission therefore concluded that AliExpress had not sufficiently contributed to protecting European consumers from such products.