US ban on technology & equipment sales to Huawei pushed back by 90 days

China’s tech giant Huawei will be granted a 90-day reprieve allowing it to continue buying technology and equipment from American firms, US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Monday.

The “temporary general license” that was set to expire on Monday will be extended for Huawei for another 90 days, the official said in an interview to the Fox Business Network. Thus the new deadline allows Huawei to buy supplies from US telecom companies until around November 19.

“Some of the rural companies are dependent on Huawei. So we’re giving them a little more time to wean themselves off. But no specific licenses are being granted for anything,” Ross said as cited by the media.

The commerce secretary added that more than 40 Huawei affiliates will be put on the ‘Entity List’, which bans American firms from doing business with listed companies. Huawei was added to the list back in May, but US companies were temporarily allowed to sell some products to the tech giant, while the ban stayed in force.

“We now have more than 100 subsidiaries on the Entity List,” Ross said. He noted that the move is aimed at making it more difficult for Huawei "to get around the sanctions.”

The news comes shortly after US President Donald Trump said that he does not want the US to continue doing business with the Chinese tech giant citing a “national security threat.” The statement came on the heels of earlier reports that Trump would grant Huawei a 90-day license extension.

Last week a separate US restriction targeting the Chinese firm came into force. The measure forbids US state agencies, the Defense Department, General Services Administration and NASA in particular, to buy products and services from Huawei unless granted a waiver. Apart from Huawei, the ban targeted other Chinese tech companies, including ZTE, Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company and Dahua Technology Company.

The world’s largest telecommunications network equipment maker, Huawei, has long been bracing for tougher US sanctions. It recently launched its own operating system HarmonyOS that can be used on smartphones in case Huawei loses access to Google’s Android. The company has also vowed to unveil its own mapping service which can become a competitor to Google Maps.

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