(Reuters) – The Trump administration is considering adding Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Tencent Holdings Ltd to a blacklist of Chinese companies allegedly owned or controlled by the Chinese military, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, which said the plan is still under deliberation and may not go through as agencies debate its impact on markets. (On.wsj.com/3nngMYB)
Shares of Alibaba and Tencent both fell about 3% in morning transactions on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Alibaba’s US-listed shares closed just over 5% on the news on Wednesday, but were roughly fixed after trading.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning transactions with eight Chinese software applications, including Ant Group’s Alipay mobile payment application, escalating tensions with Beijing two weeks before President-elect Joe Biden took office.
Alibaba and Tencent did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Reporting by Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru and Andrea Shalal and Alexandra Alper in Washington; Edited by Shounak Dasgupta and Edwina Gibbs