China drops Google antitrust probe during US trade talks - FT

China drops Google antitrust probe during US trade talks - FT

In a significant development that signals a thawing of trade tensions between the United States and China, Chinese regulators have dropped an ongoing antitrust probe against Google. This move comes amidst ongoing US-China trade negotiations that have been ongoing for several months .

The probe, which had been in progress for over a year, was launched in response to concerns over Google's dominance in the search engine market. However, with the recent easing of trade tensions, Chinese regulators have decided to suspend the investigation. This decision follows a similar move by Chinese authorities to drop an antitrust probe against Nvidia, which had been accused of violating conditions tied to its 2020 acquisition of Mellanox .

The timing of this announcement is notable, as it coincides with the recent milestone where Google's parent company, Alphabet, reached a $3 trillion market value . This achievement underscores the growing importance of AI and cloud computing in the tech industry, as investors have shown increased confidence in Google's ability to leverage these technologies for growth.

The decision to drop the probe is seen as a positive step towards fostering a more cooperative environment between the two economic giants. It remains to be seen how this development will impact future trade negotiations and the overall business climate for tech companies operating in both markets.