U.S. curbs on China to rise as ‘decoupling is really in full force,’ expert warns, amid possible TikTok ban

The
U.S.
is
likely
to
impose
more
curbs
to
check
competition
from
China
as
“the
decoupling
is
really
in
full
force,”
said
Steven
Okun,
founder
and
CEO
of
consultancy
APAC
Advisors.

“The
question
is
to
what
extent
and
how
broad
will
it
be,”
Okun
told
CNBC’s
“Street
Signs
Asia”
on
Monday.

Last
week,
lawmakers

voted
50-0
to
advance
a
bill
requiring
China’s
ByteDance
to
divest
TikTok
or
risk
the
U.S.
banning
the
popular
video
app.
House
Speaker
Mike
Johnson
told
reporters
the
TikTok
divesture
bill
will
be
on
the
floor
on
Wednesday.

“So
long
as
it
is
owned
by
ByteDance
and
thus
required
to
collaborate
with
the
Chinese
Communist
Party,
TikTok
poses
critical
threats
to
our
national
security,”
according
to
a

press
statement
by
the
Select
Committee
on
the
Chinese
Communist
Party.

The
Committee
wants
a
“reset,”
with
China
Okun
said.

“You
prevent
China
from
accessing
the
U.S.
market,
in
particular,
where
the
party
can
have
some
type
of
control,
and
then
you
build
at
home,
as
opposed
to
relying
on
China.
So
this
is
just
part
and
parcel
from
a
broader
strategy,”
he
added.

The
U.S.
has
been
ramping
up
pressure
on
Chinese
companies
in
recent
years,
especially
in
the
semiconductor,
EV
and
biotech
sectors.

“This
is
going
to
apply
to
EVs.
It
is
going
to
apply,
I
think,
to
broader
renewable
sector.
It
is
going
to
apply
certainly
into
biotech
–
I
think
this
is
the
sector
you
want
to
watch
next.”

The
U.S.
Senate
voted
earlier
this
month
to approve
a
bill
that
could
restrict
business
with
Chinese
biotech
firms, such
as
WuXi
AppTec
and
BGI,
on
national
security
concerns.

China
is
being
perceived
as
a
threat
to
the
U.S.
auto
industry
as U.S.
vehicle
exports decline
and
companies
such
as General
Motors cut
international
operations.

China
could
flood
the
U.S.
electric-vehicle
market
with
its
offerings,
Energy
Secretary
Jennifer
Granholm

warned
last
week.
“We
are
very
concerned
about
China
bigfooting
our
industry
in
the
U.S.”

The
White
house
last
month
said

the
U.S.
was
investigating whether
Chinese
vehicle
imports
pose
national
security
risks,
as
they
could
collect
sensitive
data
about
U.S.
citizens
and
infrastructure
and
send
it
to
China.

China’s
Foreign
Minister
Wang
Yi
told
reporters last
week
that
the
U.S.
has
been
coming
up
with
“new
ways
to
suppress
China,”
saying
U.S.
allegations
against
China
had
reached
an
“unbelievable
degree.”

In
October
2022,
the
U.S.
introduced
rules
aimed
at
blocking
China’s
access
to
high-tech
semiconductor
chips
and
chip-manufacturing
equipment
amid
concerns
that
China
could
use
them
for
military
purposes.

A
year
later,

the
U.S.
said
it
was
going
to
introduce
more
restrictions
to
close
gaps
that
arose
after
2022’s
restrictions
on
AI
chip
exports
went
into
effect.

“If
it
[U.S.]
persistently
monopolizes
the
high
end
of
the
value
chain,
and
keeps
China
at
the
low
end,
where
is
fairness
and
competition?”
Wang
said.

—
CNBC’s
Evelyn
Cheng
&
Clement
Tan
contributed
to
this
story.