#antitrust-probe

#antitrust-probe

But for many hotels, visibility-and sometimes survival-comes at the expense of profits. That dynamic is now at the heart of Beijing's antitrust probe. Regulators allege Trip.com is abusing its market position, with analysts citing deflation across the sector as the government's main concern. Interviews with lodging operators, industry groups and travel consultants describe a system where constant price-cutting and opaque policies are eroding profitability, even as demand rebounds.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called the announcement from China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) poor timing, a move analysts said gave China leverage in the trade talks. The two countries have traded barbs over the past six months since US President Donald Trump hit China with massive tariffs, before lowering them to 30 percent, and threatened to shut down popular social media app TikTok.