US Trade Ban Archives - Gizmochina

Huawei, ZTE face stricter restrictions as US lawmakers pass new bill

Sean — Fri, 29 Oct 2021 10:26:04 +0000

Lawmakers in the US have unanimously voted for a new bill that will tighten the reins around Huawei and ZTE. The US Senate voted earlier this week to bring to approve a legislation that will prevent the companies that are labelled as a security threat from gaining access to equipment licenses from US regulators.

According to an SCMP report, The new bill is the Secure Equipment Act, which is the latest move from the US government to restrict the Chinese telecommunications giant. This bill was brought to the US House last week and saw a 420-4 vote and has now been sent to President Joe Biden for his signature. Notably, the latest push back from the US lawmakers arrives after it was recently found that suppliers of blacklisted Chinese brands like Huawei and SMIC were still being granted` export licenses that were worth 61 billion US Dollars.

Republican Senator Marco Rubio, “Chinese state-directed companies like Huawei and ZTE are known national security threats and have no place in our telecommunications network.” This new bill would prevent the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) from reviewing or issuing new equipment licenses to firms on the FCC’s “Covered Equipment or Services List.” For those unaware, Huawei and ZTE were placed on trade blacklist back in 2019 and were later designated as national security threats and barred from the US communications network.

Back in June, the FCC had also unanimously to advance plans to ban approvals for equipment in US telecommunications network that are made from these Chinese companies. Although, this vote was withdrawn due to strong opposition from China. Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson at China’s foreign ministry had stated that The United States, without any evidence, still abuses national security and state power to suppress Chinese companies.”

Huawei to diversify its business, shifts focus to data centers, highways, solar industry, & more

Sean — Wed, 13 Oct 2021 10:06:04 +0000

Huawei Technologies has just recently established four new business units in an attempt to diversify its business operations. The company is shifting focus to various other fields as US sanctions have impacted its primary business arms.

According to an SCMP report, the Chinese tech giant is diversifying its business due US trade sanctions that has crippled its smartphone business, while pressures from the west also impact its telecommunications business as well. Now, the new units are focused on digital transformation products and services. These are aimed towards customs and ports. Furthermore, the brand is also working on technologies that will reduce the energy consumption of data centers, and smart systems for highways and the photovoltaic industry as well.

As per documents signed by Huawei founder and chief executive, officials chosen to lead the new business units were selected from internal candidates, which was confirmed by a company spokesperson. The Founder added that “Operating as independent legions, [the new units] break the existing organizational boundaries [in Huawei] so they can quickly gather resources and improving efficiency. [Each of these units] should dig deep into one field, be responsible for its business success and produce more ‘food’ for the company.”

One of the executives includes Xun Su, an official that has been with the company for over 20 years. He is now in charge of the new customs and ports unit. Similarly, Yang Yougui, former president of Huawei’s Middle East regional office, now leads the data centre energy efficiency unit, while Ma Yue and Chen Guoguang are now the heads of the smart photovoltaic and smart highway units, respectively.

Huawei responds to new US Sanctions, says it could affect various global industries

Sean — Mon, 18 May 2020 10:31:42 +0000

Earlier this year, the US government had proposed actions that could potentially hamper Huawei‘s operations globally by limiting chip supplies to the Chinese tech giant. Now, the company in the Huawei Analyst Summit 2020 event officially responded to these recent sanctions, stating that it could affect various global industries apart from just Huawei.

During the conference which was streamed online, officials stated that the company had complied with all government rules and regulations with the original trade ban back in 2019. However, the recent sanctions that are directly against the company have made Huawei actively oppose the amendments made by the US Department of Commerce. Furthermore, these sanctions could also be used to pressure other industries as well.

Huawei officials said that the US government has proceeded with such measures despite negative feedback and concerns expressed by “many companies and industry associations.” Rather, these actions can also be used to “undermine” industries worldwide, including more than 3 billion Huawei users. According to Huawei, the actions may hamper its expansion, maintenance, and operations in more than 170 countries.

This move will seek to interrupt a network chain worth hundreds of millions of dollars and could have a serious impact on a wide range of industries across the globe. Huawei called out the United State’s bullying attitude stating they are taking advantage of their “own technological strengths in an attempt to crush industries outside its borders.” In other words, undertake discriminating policies against foreign multinational corporations.

The US sanctions that have limited chip supply from TSMC to Huawei could have far reaching implications. The company believes that this move can damage the “trust and collaboration” with the semiconductor industry, which is an integral part of various other industries as well. They also added that in the long run, these actions might hurt the US itself by creating a distrust in foreign companies that may not deal with “US technologies or supply chains” in the future due to sanctions like these.

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US govt. may announce 90-day trade relief for Huawei

Anvinraj Valiyathara — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 08:53:30 +0000

The US plans to issue a 90-day trade license extension to Chinese electronics giant Huawei today (Nov. 18), allowing it to continue operating its business with American companies. Reuters’ report on Friday said an initial two-week extension was expected since a longer allowance was getting delayed due to regulatory hurdles. However, a new report by the New York Times, anonymous sources said the confirmation for the 90-day extension reportedly came over the weekend.

The US Government added Huawei to its economic blacklist back in May, citing concerns for a breach in national security. However, the US Department of Commerce allowed Huawei to continue purchasing American-made goods back in August, and the deadline ends on Nov. 18. The extension is yet to be officially announced while Huawei and the US Commerce Department declined to comment on the rumors.

The official statement for allowing Huawei to continue running its business with American companies is to help rural carriers stay in business. Most smaller companies use equipment from Huawei and ZTE to keep the costs down. The government does not want to put pressure on these smaller operators that are already struggling to offer seamless connectivity in rural areas. Wilbur Ross, the Commerce Secretary released a statement to Fox Business Network on Friday claiming some rural carriers rely on Huawei for 3G and 4G connectivity. Putting a permanent ban on Huawei will disrupt telephone services in rural America.

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The development comes at a time when the trade war between America and China is nearing its first anniversary. It is no secret that the US Government plans to prolong Huawei’s ordeal as it is a huge bargaining chip in its trade war with China. Although Huawei is not an official part of the negotiations, The US Government is expected to keep its clutches on the company, at least till Phase 1 of the negotiations is through.

US Attorney General William Barr in a statement last week said, “ZTE and Huawei cannot be trusted” as he backed a proposal barring US wireless operators from using an $8.5 billion government fund to purchase services or equipment from the Chinese duo. President Donald Trump had signed an executive order back in May, barring US companies from purchasing telecommunications equipment from companies that pose a threat to its national security. The US Department of Commerce was instructed to come up with an enforcement plan by mid-October, but that is yet to be published.

The Commerce Department is also considering over 200 requests to grant individual licenses to US companies allowing them to sell components to Huawei. No action on that regard is expected on Monday.

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Huawei partners with Russia as cold war with the West intensify

Anvinraj Valiyathara — Tue, 29 Oct 2019 07:58:02 +0000

With the US trade ban still in place and no respite in sight, Huawei has turned to Russia for support. Huawei is the largest technological company in China, which is allied with Russia. It is only natural that Huawei plays a greater role in this friendship. Huawei has utilized this opportunity to build inroads into Russia with the development of 5G technology and smartphone sales. The company further plans to significantly expand its research and development operations in Russia and partner with local universities in this regard.

This partnership could not have come at a better time for Russia, which is currently out-of-favor with the US. Huawei is bringing some much-needed foreign investment while helping Russian tech specialists upgrade their skills. Ken Hu, Huawei’s Vice Chairman, announced earlier in October that the company plans to invest nearly 500 million rubles (~$7.8 million) to promote 5G technology in Russia and train 10,000 specialists by 2025.

Back in June 2019, Huawei had signed a deal with Russian telecom service provider MTS to jointly develop 5G infrastructure in the country. The project is going strong and MTS launched the first 5G test zone in Moscow last month. Huawei has slowly sealed its position as a trusted brand in the Russian smartphone market. Huawei, along with sub-brand Honor had successfully overthrown Samsung Electronics in sales during the third quarter of 2018. As of August 2019, Huawei along with its subsidiaries controls 37% of the Russian smartphone market.

According to Eldar Murtazin, Editor-in-Chief, Mobile Review, “Huawei’s success in Russia is partly due to the heavy investments made in establishing Honor. The Russian market was blown away with the relatively high-quality smartphones from Honor at below-average prices that the competition was either unwilling or unable to match. No other company went head-to-head with Huawei in this price war as it is difficult to continue working when the initial sales are down”.

While Huawei’s reputation has been tainted in the West on allegations that they could be spying for the Chinese government, such rumors hold no precedent in Russia. “Moscow considers Huawei a law-abiding corporation that does not engage in international espionage since the allegations have not been proved” Murtazin added. On a broader note, Russian analysts are of the opinion that personal data is susceptible to leaks and there is no unique threat to Huawei users.

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Some people are less concerned about China gaining access to Russian user data as opposed to the US since the former is a close ally. According to Vladimir Rubanov, Executive Manager at Rosplatforma, a Russian IT company “A common joke among the Russian IT community goes ‘If you are using Apple, Washington listens to your calls. If you are using Honor, Beijing is listening’. Which one do you prefer?”

The rising tension between Washington and Beijing has forced Huawei to turn to the Kremlin for innovation. The company announced its plan to triple the size of its Research and Development wing in Russia within the next six years. Huawei plans to open three new R&D centers in the country by the end of 2019, making Russia its third-largest R&D center outside China.

Huawei is also strengthening ties with leading Russian technological universities and research institutions by funding studies that benefit the Chinese company and inviting them for joint projects. Huawei is utilizing Russia’s dedicated young workforce to maintain its innovative edge, despite mounting pressure from the US. Not many countries have an abundance of programmers and tech analysts. Although Russia is not the only nation with the talent and workforce, it is a strong contender in the area.

Huawei came prepared with very deep pockets to attract Russian talent. Over the years they persuaded several stalwarts in the Russian IT industry to sign up, by doubling their salaries. According to Rubanov, “Moscow is looking at the benefits of this partnership with Huawei. Apart from pumping foreign currency into the Russian economy, Huawei is also helping tech specialists develop their skillset. The company is spending their own resources to train Russian citizens in advanced technology and giving them an opportunity to participate in world-class product development”.

Specialists trained at Huawei’s facilities will eventually move on to start their own companies. Thus, fueling the Russian IT entrepreneurship. As Huawei continues to spread its wings in Russia, its success in the future will definitely come at the expense of American companies. Huawei’s strategy is simple. Since they cannot expand their business in America, they are investing heavily in Russia. This is a conscious effort to squeeze out American infrastructure companies in Russia and bleed them commercially by offering better contracts and projects to their employees.

UP NEXT: Huawei Smart Screen 65-Inch Mocha Gold color variant announced for 6,999 Yuan

(via)

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Huawei confirms Hongmeng OS moniker, Increased its Revenue in H1 2019

Joel Joseph — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 08:09:49 +0000

Huawei has been under the spotlight for the past couple of months, especially since the US government banned the company from conducting business with its companies. After the recent G20 summit, the ban was eased by the government, but Huawei still wasn’t removed completely from the Entity List. However, despite the ban, Huawei seems to have done pretty well in the first half of the year as the company’s chairman, Liang Hua revealed at a press conference today that Huawei increased its revenue in the first half of the year. He further confirmed the name of its upcoming operating system, Hongmeng OS at the press conference.

Huawei posting increased revenues in H1 2019 isn’t entirely surprising given that the ban came into effect in May. So Huawei’s performance in the initial four months of the year could have been pretty strong to mitigate its effect. If you remember, Huawei had already managed to ship over 100 million smartphones before the ban came into effect. So, the real damage from the ban will probably be seen in the second half of the year. Note that initial estimates revealed that Huawei’s US trade ban was likely to wipe out $30 billion of the company’s revenue.

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At present, Washington’s stance is to allow US companies to sell their technology and products to Huawei as long as these products don’t pose a threat to national security. But Huawei’s chairman isn’t happy with the current situation. In the press conference today, Liang said that “adding Huawei to the Entity List was neither justified or fair,” and that Huawei “should be removed from the list entirely”.

He further said that the company’s Hongmeng OS was developed for IoT products and that Google’s Android was the preferred OS for smartphones. “We haven’t decided whether to develop HongMeng into a smartphone OS yet” he added. But this could change if Huawei is barred from using Android on its phones.

UP NEXT: Honor TV incoming on July 15?

(Source)

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Things get worse as ARM (Arm Holdings) suspends business with Huawei

Habeeb Onawole — Wed, 22 May 2019 11:02:09 +0000

You might be wondering what is happening since ARM, the semiconductor giant isn’t a US company. It is actually a British company with its headquarters in Cambridge, England but which is now owned by Japan’s SoftBank. So, why is it announcing that it is suspending business with Huawei following the recent trade ban by the US?

In the memo which ARM sent to its employees, it instructed them to stop all “active contracts, support entitlements, and any pending engagements” with Huawei and its subsidiaries. The reason it gave for this is that its chip designs which Huawei uses for its Kirin processors contain “US-origin technology”! Hence, the US trade ban covers them.

This is a big blow for Huawei as that means it can’t develop new processors (the Kirin 985 is reportedly not affected and maybe the next gen Kirin 700 SoC which may already be in development).

It has been reported that the memo was sent out to workers on May 16 last week, and even with the 90-day temporary reprieve granted by the US, ARM employees have not been told they can resume work with Huawei.

The memo informed its members of staff to send a message to Huawei’s own employees informing them that they will not be able to “provide support, deliver technology (whether software, code or other updates), engage in technical discussions, or otherwise discuss technical matters with Huawei, HiSilicon, or any of the other named entities”. ARM staff have also been instructed to “politely decline” and end conversations related to business with Huawei employees at industry events.

The ban is said to also affect ARM China, a company in China which ARM Holdings owns a 49% stake in. The company was established last year between ARM and a Chinese investment group to help ARM develop and offer products and support in China.

Huawei phones use chipsets from Qualcomm, MediaTek, and its own in-house developed Kirin SoCs. It is not yet clear if ARM Holdings is misinterpreting the US ban but if it isn’t, it means Huawei won’t be able to use MediaTek processors to which are built on ARM technologies.

Huawei hasn’t released a statement yet on the current development. However, this might be the biggest blow to its business as it might not have a backup plan for this.

(Source, Via)

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