In recent discussions with the US-China Business Council, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) laid out the Chinese government’s intended approach to foreign engagement with the incoming Biden administration. While some of the messages sound similar to historic bilateral engagement, a few differences, particularly around the specifics of bilateral dialogue, were apparent.
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December 16th, 2020
December 16th, 2020
With international tech giants facing antitrust investigations in Europe and the United States for their dominant positions in the internet economy, the Chinese government is expanding its anti-monopoly regime to address similar competition concerns with its domestic digital platforms. China is paying particular attention to merger and acquisition (M&A) activity via variable interest enterprise (VIE) structures by its digital giants. The announcement follows a slew of general anti-...
December 2nd, 2020
Wednesday evening, the House unanimously passed the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, which President Trump is expected to sign. The bill, which passed the Senate in May, would delist foreign companies that fail to come into compliance with Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) audit rules and disclosure requirements within 3 years.
December 2nd, 2020
On October 21, 2020, the National People’s Congress (NPC) released the draft Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL). The draft law is set to become China’s first to comprehensively codify the rights of individuals over their personal data and the obligations of processors when collecting, processing, or transferring personal information. This makes the draft law analogous to the EU’s 2018 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). However, there are enough differences between both...
December 2nd, 2020
Working-level engagement between the US and Chinese governments on intellectual property (IP) rights issues is at an all-time high, but translating cooperation into tangible improvements in the regulatory environment for companies will take more time. Since the Phase One agreement went into effect, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), and China’s...
December 2nd, 2020
USCBC’s Shanghai Office held its annual China Operations (CHOPs) conference in Shanghai on Tuesday, November 24. The program included more than 100 company representatives across industry. Companies and experts spoke candidly on a range of political and operational issues facing US companies doing business in China.
November 13th, 2020
Under International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authority, President Trump issued an executive order today banning US persons from trading securities of “communist Chinese military companies.” According to the executive order, these companies contribute to China’s civil-military fusion policy, and include those that the Department of Defense listed in June and August, as well as any companies and related subsidiaries that the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Treasury...
November 11th, 2020
First mentioned in May, the concept of “dual circulation” introduces a new effort to sustain China’s continued economic development in a post-pandemic world. The framework consists of both “domestic circulation,” referring to production and consumption within China, and “international circulation,” which refers to foreign trade and investment. Over the next 5 years, China will seek to make domestic circulation the main driver of its economy, with international circulation as a complementary...
November 11th, 2020
Although provisions of the 2019 Ecommerce Law have been enforced to varying degrees in different regions of China for almost 2 years now, comprehensive implementing measures have yet to be officially codified. Last month, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) issued draft Administrative Measures for Supervising Online Transactions, the second and likely final draft before promulgation. In current form, the measures would further regulate China’s fast-evolving ecosystem of...
November 11th, 2020
Leaders of the US House and Senate armed services committees are currently working on a compromise National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) proposal for fiscal year 2021. The committee leadership had planned to meet earlier this week, but it is not yet known if they reached a conference report with unified text. While several issues will need to be resolved around human rights and financial disclosures before the bill goes up for a final vote, there is broad alignment on many China-related...
