Tencent unveils largest-ever plan to boost foreign trade and employment

Chinese tech giant Tencent launched an ambitious suite of initiatives aimed at boosting domestic consumption and expanding jobs on Thursday, marking its largest-ever consumption subsidy and graduate recruitment drive.

As part of its new trade initiative, Tencent introduced 10 support measures to help foreign trade companies tap into China's domestic market, and estimated the plan could generate over 100 billion yuan ($13.8 billion) in new sales for export-oriented businesses.

The program includes fast-track onboarding via WeChat mini shops, marketing incentives, reduced transaction fees, livestreaming support, and targeted subsidies.

The initiative also aims to help domestic brands expand overseas. Tenpay Global, Tencent's cross-border payments arm, will partner with Southeast Asian e-commerce platforms to offer small exporters full-chain support including free training, store setup, logistics, and transaction services.

In a parallel move to bolster China's job market, Tencent announced it will open 10,000 internships jobs in 2025 alone and 28,000 internship positions over the next three years. Roughly 60 percent of these positions will be in tech roles, covering fields such as AI, cloud computing, big data, game engines, and digital content.

"This is Tencent's largest employment expansion for graduates in history," said Xu Dan, Tencent's senior vice-president and chief talent officer. "We are stepping up efforts to attract and train young technology professionals who will power our next phase of innovation."