A bill to expand oversight powers of the US government over Chinese investment is entering its final stages of review this week, the Financial Times reports, as many American officials hope to step up restrictions on China’s access to key technology.
The bill would confer greater authority on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), whose remit will include tighter scrutiny of Chinese tech companies, including investment in small start-up companies and real-estate transactions.
The agreement made last week between the Trump administration and Beijing to reduce the bilateral trade imbalance was seen as a cheap win by many in Washington, who feel it does not consider key structural differences between the two countries.
“China’s trade negotiators must be laughing themselves all the way back to Beijing,” said Senate minority leader Chuck Shumer. “The US cannot let China continue to steal America’s lifeblood, our intellectual property and flout international trade laws.”
The Senate Banking Committee will decide whether to pass the bill forward, which could be finalised by as early as this summer.