CHINA HINTS AT RETALIATION FOR RESTRICTIONS ON HUAWEI

China has hinted at a vigorous retaliation against US companies after the White House slapped restrictions on chip makers and manufacturers of Huawei designed products.

In a story written by Zen Soo and Joe McDonald for the Associated Press (AP) on Monday, May 18, 2020, they said the latest US sanctions on tech giant Huawei “threaten to devastate the company and escalate a feud with China that could disrupt technology industries worldwide.”

Huawei Technologies Ltd. is one of the biggest makers of smartphones and network equipment, but that $123 billion-a-year business is in jeopardy after Washington announced further restrictions on use of American technology by foreign companies that make its processor chips. “Our business will inevitably be impacted,” Huawei’s chairman, Guo Ping, said at a conference Monday with industry analysts. “In spite of that, the challenges over the past year have helped us develop a thicker skin, and we are confident about finding solutions soon.”

On Monday, China’s Ministry of Commerce warned it will protect “the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises,” but gave no details of potential retaliation. Beijing has threatened in the past to issue an “unreliable entities list” that might restrict operations of US companies in China.