Huawei could be part of China trade deal: Trump

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has suggested he might be willing to make embattled Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei part of trade talks with China.

His administration last week put Huawei, which it has called a threat to national security, on a blacklist that effectively barred US firms from selling the Chinese company computer chips and other components without government approval.

The move could cripple Huawei, the world’s largest manufacturer of networking gear and second-biggest smartphone maker. “I can imagine Huawei being included in some form of a trade deal,” Trump told reporters. He offered no details but said any arrangement “would look very good for us, I can tell you that”.

It came as Trump rolled out another 16 billion dollars (£12 billion) in aid for farmers hurt by his trade policies, and financial markets shook on the growing realisation that the US and China are far from settling a bitter, year-long trade dispute.

US agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue said the first of three payments is likely to be made in July or August and suggested the US and China are unlikely to have settled their differences by then. “The package we’re announcing today ensures that farmers do not bear the brunt of unfair retaliatory tariffs imposed by China and other trading partners,” Perdue said.

The latest bailout comes on top of 11 billion dollars (£8 billion) in aid Trump provided farmers last year. “We will ensure our farmers get the relief they need and very, very quickly,” he said. Seeking to reduce America’s trade deficit with the rest of the world and with China in particular, he has imposed import taxes on foreign steel, aluminium, solar panels and dishwashers and on thousands of Chinese products.

UStrading partners have lashed back with retaliatory tariffs of their own, focusing on US agricultural products in a direct shot at the American heartland, where support for Trump runs high.

On Friday, Beijing accused the US of seeking to “colonise global business” with moves against Huawei and other Chinese technology companies. Foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang accused American politicians of “fabricating various lies based on subjective presumptions and trying to mislead the American people”.

The China Daily, an English-language newspaper, said US expressions of concerns about Chinese surveillance equipment maker Hikvision were for the self-serving aim of claiming the “moral high ground” to promote Washington’s political agenda.

“In this way, it is hoping to achieve the colonisation of the global business world,” the newspaper said. Hikvision said in a statement that it takes US concerns about its business seriously and is working to ensure it complies with human rights standards.