Alibaba tells vendors to halt drug sales online, cites government rule change
Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has told vendors on its Tmall website to stop selling medicine, saying a local regulator has issued an "urgent" directive halting drug sales via third-party platforms. Alibaba, in a notice dated May 27 seen by Reuters, cited a circular from the Hebei province branch of the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) on "urgent control measures relating to drug products". The regulator's surprise directive comes as the government promotes retail sales of over-the-counter (OTC) medicine, with a pledge to harness technology to solve issues as varied as high drug prices and snarling hospital queues.
