The “one-China principle” is the “political foundation” of Chinese-U.S. relations and a “common consensus of the international community,” said a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Friday. The 2016 Democratic Party platform said the party was “committed” to a one-China policy, but the commitment was absent from the newly approved 2020 document. “We urge relevant sides to abide by the one-China principle,” and to “prudently and properly handle Taiwan-related issues,” said the spokesperson.

A U.S. intelligence official urged companies to avoid supply chains involving Huawei and said there's a strong push within the administration to bolster domestic production of 5G technologies. Constance Taube, National Counterintelligence and Security Center deputy director, said U.S. companies should approach Huawei and other Chinese state-controlled companies with a high degree of skepticism, saying their supply chains will ultimately benefit from more trusted actors. “It's fair to say that supply chain risk can probably never be entirely eliminated,” Taube said, speaking during a Wednesday webinar hosted by the Intelligence and National Security Alliance. “But supply chain risk must be managed.” Taube said Huawei is “subject to the whims of an authoritarian government,” saying its strong links to the Chinese military should dissuade U.S. companies from trading with it. Recent U.S. restrictions, such as increased license requirements on exports to Huawei and Chinese military end-users, might cause industry pain in the short term, Taube said, but the U.S. will ultimately be better off. China heavily criticized the U.S. restrictions. Taube said the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the risks of doing business with China and stressed the importance of supply chain diversification. “What we have learned during the COVID crisis is that we are so deeply integrated in terms of supply chains on critical areas, that we may want to rethink and readjust to ensure that when we are in crisis periods, we are well positioned to get through the crisis without a reliance on partners that might not gain full trust.” Though Huawei is the world’s top telecommunication equipment maker, Taube said U.S. companies should turn to other sellers and buyers of 5G technology that are trusted. Taube also cautioned U.S. companies against doing business with other Chinese companies, saying they're subject to “different kinds of scrutiny and different requirements than companies that operate in environments that are democratically managed.” She said it's often unclear which companies are aiding the Chinese government. “Chinese government provides subsidies to their organizations that they feel are vital to their own national or economic security,” Taube said. “And I'm putting it bluntly: They don't necessarily always represent them as subsidies.”

Cree views 5G as a “multiyear expansion, with major traction coming,” said CEO Gregg Lowe on a Tuesday investor call. The company supplies silicon-carbide RF and power chips for 5G infrastructure applications. “There have been a number of recent announcements coming out of Asia pointing towards growing 5G momentum in that region. While the global pandemic has further delayed some rollouts in other regions, we continue to be well positioned to support this global expansion.” Cree stopped shipping to Huawei “for the better part of a year” after the Commerce Department’s export ban took effect, said Lowe: “We have no Huawei revenue plans in any of our future projections or forecasts.” Any “large impact” from Huawei, “we've basically taken it out of the picture,” he said. “We have developed good relationships with other players around the world and are repurposing the technology that we had developed for Huawei for those customers.” Lowe concedes the “Huawei situation was a pretty significant setback for us,” he said. “But we've adjusted our plans, we've adjusted our focus to go after non-Huawei customers.”

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security added 38 Huawei affiliates to the entity list and refined a May amendment to its foreign direct product rule, further restricting the Chinese company's access to U.S. technology. BIS said the direct product rule also applies to transactions where U.S. software or technology is “the basis” for a foreign-made item produced or purchased by Huawei, or when such an entity is “a party to such a transaction.” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Huawei "has continuously tried to evade" the previous changes to the foreign direct product rule. The telecom gearmaker didn't comment.

Tencent Holdings is “in the process of seeking further clarification from relevant parties in the U.S.” about President Donald Trump’s Aug. 6 executive order banning U.S. transactions with the WeChat parent company after Sept. 20 on national security grounds (see 2008070032), said Chief Financial Officer John Lo Wednesday on a quarterly investor call. “Based on our initial reading and subsequent press reports, the executive order is focused on WeChat in the United States and not our other businesses in the U.S.,” said Lo. The White House didn’t comment Thursday.

Delisting Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) shares from the New York Stock Exchange is “not the only option” if President Donald Trump’s Aug. 6 executive order takes effect barring WeChat parent Tencent Holdings from doing business in the U.S. after Sept. 20 (see 2008070032 or 2008070061), said TME Chief Strategy Officer Tony Yip on a quarterly investor call Monday. It's "premature" to comment because the July 24 report from the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets on alleged Chinese threats to U.S. national security lists “alternative" remedies to an outright ban, he said. “We are evaluating all options” to be sure that when “further policy” directives come out, “we will be acting in the best interest of our shareholders to protect long-term value,” he said. The White House didn’t comment Tuesday. The stock closed 1.2% lower Tuesday at $15.50.

Some tech merchandise of Chinese origin sent to Mexico for minimal handling and then exported to the U.S. is eligible for tariff treatment under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on free trade, said Customs and Border Protection in a ruling Friday. Jose Fierro, an El Paso customs broker, requested the ruling less than a week after USMCA took effect July 1. The broker said a client contracted with a Mexican maquiladora final assembly facility for logistical services, and inquired if USMCA treatment would apply. Workers at the maquiladora facility will provide sorting, picking and packing services on the goods, which will be exported to the U.S. "in the same condition as they were imported into Mexico," Fierro told CBP. The goods include computing products of various sorts and a broad variety of goods, including smart speakers, Bluetooth headphones, smartwatches and fitness trackers.

Imports at major U.S. retail container ports are on pace to finish 2020 with their lowest annual volume in four years, reported the National Retail Federation Monday. “Retailers are being careful not to import more than they can sell,” it said. “Shelves will be stocked, but this is not the year to be left with warehouses full of unsold merchandise.” U.S. ports handled 1.61 million 20-foot-long cargo containers or their equivalents in June, up 4.9% from May, but down 10.5% from June 2019, said NRF. It’s estimating July was down 10.2% year over year, and is forecasting monthly declines from 2019 will average 8.5% August through December. That would bring 2020 to 19.6 million containers, a 9.4% decline from 2019 and the lowest annual total since 19.1 million containers traveled through U.S. ports in 2016, said NRF.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative seeks comment by Aug. 20 whether to extend for another year new List 4A Section 301 tariff exclusions on Chinese imports that are set to expire Sept. 1. Each exclusion will be evaluated independently, said the agency Monday. The focus will be whether, despite the first imposition of the additional duties, the particular product remains available only from China.

China "firmly opposes" the executive orders President Donald Trump signed Thursday banning U.S. transactions with the parent companies of TikTok and WeChat beginning Sept. 20. The U.S., "under the pretext of national security, has time and again used state power to wantonly oppress non-U.S. companies, nothing short of bullying," said a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Friday. "All this will boomerang." The “spread” of mobile apps developed and owned by companies in China “continues to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States,” Trump wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Thursday in separate letters addressing the alleged WeChat and TikTok threats. Both automatically capture “vast swaths of information from its users,” giving the “Chinese Communist Party access to Americans’ personal and proprietary information,” said Trump. TikTok said it was “shocked” by the EO, which it said was issued “without any due process.” The company said it tried to negotiate with the U.S. government for about a year to address U.S. concerns. “What we encountered instead was that the Administration paid no attention to facts, dictated terms of an agreement without going through standard legal processes, and tried to insert itself into negotiations between private businesses,” it said. TikTok also said it has never shared user data with the Chinese government. “We will pursue all remedies available to us in order to ensure that the rule of law is not discarded and that our company and our users are treated fairly -- if not by the Administration, then by the US courts,” the company said. A spokesperson for WeChat parent Tencent said the company is “reviewing the executive order to get a full understanding.”