The Trump administration has appointed Intel Corp. and other technology companies that it is revoking licenses to do business with China’s Huawei Technologies Co. and declines new license applications, Reuters reported Sunday.
The final step against Chinese tech companies comes just days before Trump’s departure from the White House on Wednesday. The US claims that telecom equipment manufacturer Huawei is a threat to national security.
The Trump administration banned US companies from doing business with Huawei in 2019, but a handful – including Intel INTC,
– have received special permission for this.
Citing unnamed sources, Reuters reported that eight licenses have been revoked from four companies, and quoted an email Friday from the Semiconductor Industry Association describing the Department of Commerce’s intent to “remove a significant number of license requests. for export to Huawei. ” Reuters said the vast majority of about 150 pending license applications, worth about $ 120 billion worth of goods and services, were denied.
The Trump administration has taken punitive action against a number of Chinese companies in recent months, including a failed attempt to ban TikTok and an executive order that forced the New York Stock Exchange to scrap China’s three largest telecom companies.
It is unclear whether the incoming Biden government will continue the restrictions against Chinese companies, with some experts predicting orders could be interrupted while the new government assesses matters.