China’s Opposition to Expanded US Investment Curbs
China’s Commerce Ministry said it “firmly opposes” a US Treasury proposal to broaden and toughen curbs on US investment in China, describing the approach as discriminatory and an overly broad use of national security grounds, according to Bloomberg. The ministry said it would monitor developments and warned the rule would harm bilateral economic ties, adding that China reserves the right to take corresponding measures, without detailing what such steps might involve.
Details of the Proposal and Broader US-China Trade Tensions
The proposal, released on Thursday, would expand the Outbound Investment Security Program by tightening limits on US investment linked to hypersonics, quantum, high-performance computing, supercomputing and AI in China, Russia and North Korea, while also adding biotechnology to the targeted sectors. In markets, the China-sensitive Australian Dollar edged lower; at the time of writing, AUD/USD was down 0.09% on the day at 0.7028. Separately, the broader US-China trade dispute was framed as beginning in 2018, followed by the Phase One deal in January 2020, and later a renewed escalation after Donald Trump’s return as the 47th US President, including a pledged 60% tariff on China implemented on 20 January 2025.
