The municipal government of Shenzhen and the Chinese business-to-business e-commerce company Alibaba Group have signed a strategic agreement for the establishment of an e-commerce platform.

Under the agreement, the two parties will jointly promote the development of the Internet industry and cooperate in the establishment of an e-commerce platform that can reach the markets of the Pearl River Delta, Southeast Asia, and even the entire world.

Based on the principals of "enterprise-oriented, overall innovation, and mutual benefit", the two parties will make full use of the various advantages of Shenzhen, including human resources, financing, and distribution, to enhance the core competitiveness of the city's e-commerce industry.

Alibaba Group also announced that it will set up its southern headquarters in Shenzhen and will build an international operating headquarters and a business cloud computer research center in the city. In addition, the group plans to strengthen cooperation with Shenzhen in sectors such as electronic information, banking, insurance, and logistics.

Wang Rong, acting mayor of Shenzhen, said that the Shenzhen government has listed the Internet industry as one of its three strategic emerging high-tech industries. The city is currently working on plans and policies to promote this industry, so as to build itself into an e-commerce model city and to create a good environment for the development of Shenzhen's Internet enterprises.