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President Donald Trump speaks at a meeting with Republican lawmakers in the White House Cabinet Room on Tuesday, June 26, 2018, in Washington. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump suggests that his administration may forego previously announced plans to impose limits on Chinese investment in US technology companies and high-tech exports to China, preferring instead to call on Congress to take action.
Trump, at a meeting with lawmakers, rebuffed recent reports that the US was preparing investment restrictions and suggested that the administration could do this through foreign investment reviews under the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
"We need to protect these companies – we can not let people steal their technology," Trump said when asked if the administration was preparing the investment restrictions. He said US technology could be protected through CFIUS. "We have a lot of things to do and we are working on it," he said.
The administration should urge Congress to finalize legislation modernizing a law that allows the government to review foreign investment for reasons of national security, according to a person close to the plans who spoke anonymously and did not speak to the government. has not been allowed to speak publicly.
The House approved Tuesday a bill that would make amendments to the CFIUS Act. The provisions should be considered in the context of a joint committee of the House and Senate to consider a defense policy bill approved by the Senate last week.
US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Monday that the administration is preparing investment restrictions on China's "false". Mnuchin said the restrictions would not only target China but "all countries that are trying to steal our technology".
These comments go against the White House's May 29 statement: "The United States will Apply Specific Investment Restrictions and Strengthen Export Controls for Chinese Persons and Entities" related to the acquisition of technologies of industrial importance. and would be "implemented soon after."
Trump's White House has accused Beijing of leading predatory practices in an attempt to undermine US technology, including cybervol and forcing American companies to return technology in exchange for access to the Chinese market. The United States plans to charge $ 34 billion worth of Chinese products on July 6, an amount that could reach $ 450 billion if China refuses to back down and retaliate with sanctions on its own.
Amanda DeBusk, president of the international trade department of Dechert LLP and former head of the Commerce Department, said the abandonment of the broad restrictions on Chinese investment "would be a conciliatory step" that could lead to a cease -the-fire tit-for-tat tariffs begin to come into effect.
DeBusk noted that trade tensions have pushed the US stock market down in recent days and said Trump could look for a way to avoid a "potentially catastrophic" trade war with China.
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Martin Crutsinger, editor of AP Economics in Washington, contributed to this report.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
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