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Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius, who is on a working visit in China, on Wednesday met with the founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Limited, Jack Ma, and invited him to establish a centre for logistics and packing in Lithuania.

“I am delighted that Lietuvos paštas (Lithuania Post) has been one of Alibaba‘s partners for three years already and serves as the company’s and China’s e-commerce gateway into Europe”, said the Head of the Government and pointed out that this model of cooperation allowed for an additional flow of the so-called transit e-commerce.

The Prime Minister presented the favourable conditions for investment in our country and noted that there are 5 free trade zones in Lithuania which can offer favourable conditions for investment.

“The business climate in Lithuania is good and according to the World Bank rating we are among the world’s top 20 most business-friendly economies”, pointed out the Head of the Government. The Prime Minister also emphasised the fact that Lithuania has one of the fastest public Internet access in the world which is extremely important to such companies as Alibaba which develop their activities online.

“Such giants as NASDAQ, Western Union and others already operate in Lithuania where they have established their service centres“, said the Prime Minister by also stressing that Lithuania has advanced logistics and an important part of the gross domestic product is created by this sector.

The Executive Chairman of Alibaba stated that the company is interested in developing its activities in Eastern Europe. He considers Lithuania as a country with fair business which could open up the market of eurozone and the whole of Europe to Asia. Jack Ma said that the Prime Minister’s offer to establish a centre for logistics in Lithuania is noteworthy, he also promised to consider the invitation of the Head of the Government to visit Lithuania and evaluate such an opportunity.

Alibaba.com is largely popular e-commerce website, founded back in 1999 by Jack Ma together with 17 colleagues. The website serves as an intermediary between the seller and the buyer. Over more than 15 years of operation, the company has rapidly expanded, with new pages covering other segments. The company has grown into the Alibaba Group Holdings currently owning 10 companies that have 70 per cent of the parcel logistics market in China.

Today, Alibaba Group employs 15 million people in China, company’s sales reach 500 billion US dollars. In 2014, company's market value was 259 billion dollars, and its value continues to grow.

In a meeting with Liang Jianzhang, co-founder and CEO of the largest and most influential travel and sales company Ctrip International, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius pointed out Lithuania’s advantages in terms of tourism, inviting the company to explore investment opportunities in our country.

“Tourism in Lithuania is among the fastest growing sectors, and we are pleased to note an ever growing number of tourists from China. In 2015, the number of tourists from China to Lithuania was 10 thousand more than in 2014”, said the Head of Government. The Prime Minister expressed his hope that the flows will continue to grow, more so due to the intensive development of leisure and sports infrastructure, and growing sector of health services, which represent good value for money.

It was agreed to cooperate in promoting in China and the Asian market the advantages of tourism in Lithuania, particularly in the health field. The Lithuanian Prime Minister invited the Ctrip CEO to visit Lithuania and consider the possibility of opening representation in Vilnius.