The Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. on Friday announced that it is buying Hong Kong’s biggest English daily, the South China Morning Post, Reuters reported. The acquisition is considered a politically sensitive move by the e-commerce major as the paper holds a prime position among the city’s dominant English-speaking elite. The company has acquired several media organisations in recent years, including China Business News, a domestic financial media firm. The 112-year-old Post, however, is a key purchase, given its influence in the city. The editorial calls the paper is allowed to take is considered an indicator of the freedom of Hong Kong's press. The press in Hong Kong has for decades been freer than mainland agencies from pressure from China to take a state line on issues. However, many feel that the curbs on the free press have increased in recent times.

Editors at the paper said that the buy-out by a mainland Chinese company would maintain an editorial imbalance in the paper, suggesting that they might be forced to have a Chinese angle to their stories. Alibaba’s executive vice-chairman Joe Tsai said the company would not interfere in “day-to-day editorial decision”. The financial details of the takeover were not disclosed, though the newspaper has a market value of $392 million (approximately Rs 2,600 crore).