By Doina Chiacu and Alexandra Alper
(Reuters) -The U.S. will suspend for one year a new measure that vastly expanded the number of Chinese firms facing tough restrictions on access to U.S. technology, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday.
The move, agreed as part of President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s summit, came in exchange for China delaying by one year its restrictions on rare earth mineral exports, key ingredients for tech that are primarily controlled by China.
When asked about the so-called affiliates rule on Fox Business Network, Bessent said “Yes, we are going to be suspending that for a year in return for the suspension …on the rare earth licensing regime.”
The rule, unveiled by the Trump administration on Sept. 29 and strongly opposed by Beijing, essentially barred Chinese firms at least 50% owned by previously sanctioned companies from receiving U.S. tech exports. The measure, which sought to make it harder for Chinese firms to use subsidiaries to buy restricted technology, hit 20,0000 new Chinese firms with U.S. export restrictions, according to a recent report from WireScreen.
The moratorium comes after Trump and Xi were able to discuss big picture issues with great respect at their meeting earlier in the day in South Korea, Bessent said in the interview.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu, Maiya Keidan and Alexandra Alper; editing by Susan Heavey and Chizu Nomiyama )
