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The US Department of Commerce on Friday lifted the ban on US companies selling goods to ZTE, allowing China's second largest manufacturer of telecom equipment to resume operations. escrow bank account under a settlement reached last month. The settlement also provides for a $ 1 billion penalty that ZTE paid to the US Treasury in June
. "The department will remain vigilant in closely monitoring ZTE's actions to comply with all US laws and regulations," he said. Wilbur Ross. a statement that describes the terms of the agreement as being the strictest ever imposed in such a case.
The terms will allow the department to protect the national security of the United States, Ross said.
The administration confronted the legislators of its own party on issues related to China, and this was no different. On Friday, Senator Marco Rubio, a Republican, criticized the lifting of the ban.
"ZTE should be bankrupt There is no" deal "with a state-run company that the Chinese government and the Communist Party are using to spy on and steal from us where the Americans are coming out winners, "said Rubio in a statement.
A photograph circulating among employees around midnight showed ZTE's new general manager and 10 other managers each giving a thumbs up to the news, which was flashed on a company screen, according to one person aware of the case.
The stay follows threats from the Trump administration this week to impose 10 percent tariffs on 200 billion worth of Chinese goods.
ZTE, which relies on US components for its smart phones and network equipment, has ceased major operations after the prohibition of the ban in April.
US President Donald Trump tweeted in May that he has closed down. ZTE and let it reopen, although no agreement has been found. White House Commercial Counselor Peter Navarro said last month that Trump had agreed to lift the ban as a gesture of goodwill toward Chinese President Xi Jinping
. Korea, Department of Commerce officials said. ZTE pleaded guilty last year to the violations of the sanctions.
ZTE paid $ 892 million in penalties in the United States under the 2017 settlement and guilty plea. The last transaction of $ 1.4 billion adds to that
The $ 400 million will remain in escrow for 10 years to allow the US government to have access to money if ZTE violates the June regulations.
Hong Kong shares jumped 24% after Reuters announced that the United States had signed an escrow agreement that allowed ZTE to deposit the $ 400 million.
US-listed stocks fell 2.4% to $ 3.70 on Friday. The news came after markets closed in Asia
Shares of US suppliers Acacia Communications and Lumentum Holdings increased by more than 3% before ending at less than 1%.
ZTE paid US companies more than $ 2.3 billion in 2017, including Qualcomm, Intel, Broadcom and Texas Instruments.
The company, which employs some 80,000 people, obtained a one-month limited waiver last week to maintain existing networks and equipment.
ZTE replaced its board of directors According to the Department of Commerce, senior management, as required by the June regulations,
will now operate with a suspended ban of 10 years, which states Can activate if they find new violations. The current ban could have lasted seven years.
Many US lawmakers see the company as a threat to national security, and on Thursday a group of Republican and Democratic US senators demanded that ZTE's sanctions be reinstated. the way of a confrontation with Trump on the issue last month, when he pbaded an annual defense policy bill with an amendment to reverse the agreement. His fate is not clear.
Reuters reported US requests for an agreement on June 1, and June 5, revealed that ZTE had signed a preliminary agreement with the Commerce Department, with the fine and other terms. A US survey of ZTE was launched after Reuters reported in 2012 that the company had signed contracts to ship millions of dollars worth of hardware and software to Iran from some of the best-known states in the United States. technological societies
© Thomson Reuters 2018
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