Trump using TikTok as leverage in Sino-US trade links, experts say

United States President Donald Trump seems to be using TikTok, a popular video-sharing app owned by Chinese tech company Byte-Dance, as a bargaining chip in Sino-US economic and trade relations, experts said on Tuesday.

A forced stake sell-off through the use of political pressure deviates from the principles of market economy and fair competition, they said.

The US is using national security as a pretext to contain and crack down on Chinese companies operating in the country, which is not only harming the legitimate rights and interests of these enterprises but also disrupting healthy market order and impeding global economic growth, they added.

On Monday, Trump signed an executive order intended to pause Congress' TikTok ban for 75 days, a period in which he said he will seek a US buyer in a deal that can protect national security interests while leaving the popular social media platform open to Americans.

Trump also said that tariffs on China could hinge on a deal over TikTok's ownership. The US should be entitled to get half of TikTok if a deal for the app is reached, he said, adding that he intended to impose tariffs on China if it rejected the deal.

Bai Ming, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said the Trump administration is resorting to political maneuvers to threaten TikTok's Chinese owner to sell a significant stake, while in the process attempting to suppress China's rise as a technological power.

Such unilateral action not only violates the principle of fair competition in a free market, but also affects normal business activities of companies operating in the US, ultimately harming the rights of US consumers, given TikTok's wide popularity among the country's young generation, Bai said.

TikTok, which boasts 170 million users in the US, went dark briefly on Saturday, disappearing from the app stores operated by Apple and Google, hours before a law requiring its Chinese parent company to sell the app to a US company or face a nationwide ban took effect on Sunday.

TikTok restored its services after Trump said on Sunday he would issue an executive order to grant the app an extension. He also proposed to establish a joint venture where the US owns 50 percent of the social media platform.

While the app is now up and running, it still faces an uncertain future.

Zhu Keli, founding director of the China Institute of New Economy, said that Trump's 50 percent ownership proposal is undoubtedly a direct intervention in the market behavior of enterprises. The US government generalizes the concept of national security and politicizes economic and trade issues, he said.

Zhu emphasized that "the move not only goes against the basic principles of market economy, but may also have a negative impact on the global science and technology innovation ecosystem".

"TikTok is still facing several challenges in the US. How to maintain user growth amid fierce market competition is an urgent problem. In addition, the US government may continue to leverage political power to contain it, which further increases uncertainty and adds to its operational difficulties in the country," he said.

Market insiders said that US authorities should create a fair, just and nondiscriminatory business environment for enterprises from all countries to invest and operate in the US, instead of interfering in the normal operation of enterprises through political means.

fanfeifei@chinadaily.com.cn