Tech gets brief reprieve from Trump’s Huawei ban

The Trump administration’s decision to delay an order to blacklist products from Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei by 90 days is giving American tech companies a brief reprieve from a decision that threatened to rattle the industry.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement late Monday that the temporary license “grants operators time to make other arrangements and the Department space to determine the appropriate long-term measures for Americans and foreign telecommunications providers that currently rely on Huawei equipment for critical services.”

Ross also noted that the license will “allow operations to continue for existing Huawei mobile phone users and rural broadband networks.”

The move followed an order from President Trump last week that would have banned American companies from dealing with Huawei, citing national security reasons. Huawei has long faced scrutiny from the U.S. intelligence community over its ties to the Chinese government.

But that decision posed tough challenges for U.S. companies, many of which rely on Huawei for important components. Any effort to cut out the Chinese company threatened to shake up supply chains and prices. And Huawei could be just the beginning as the administration takes a closer look at other Chinese telecom companies, such as ZTE.

Google was among the companies that began taking steps to instantly end its business with the company after last week’s order. For Google and other companies, however, the administration’s waiver gives them more time to deal with the potential ramifications.

The spokesperson told The Hill on Tuesday the temporary license form the Commerce Department allows for “limited engagement” for 90 days and means Google can “continue providing software updates and security patches to existing models.”

The Trump administration’s shifting stance on Huawei also comes as it carries out high-stakes negotiations with China on a new trade deal. That’s led to worries that White House officials are using the fight with Huawei as a bargaining chip in the broader talks