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What does Jack Ma's return to the spotlight mean?

Analysts say the Alibaba founder's re-emergence could signal a policy change in Beijing.

The measures put in place by the common prosperity policies were seen by some as a way to rein in the billionaire owners of some of China's biggest companies, to instead give customers and workers more of a say in how firms operate and distribute their earnings. Richard Windsor, director of technology at research firm Counterpoint, said Mr Ma's presence would be a sign that China's leadership "had enough of stagnation and could be prepared to let the private sector have a much freer hand". "Rather than marking the end of tech sector scrutiny, [Jack Ma's] reappearance suggests that Beijing is pivoting from crackdowns to controlled engagement," an associate professor at the University of Technology Sydney, Marina Zhang told the BBC.

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