The Trump administration and members of Congress pressured the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday to remove China’s three major state-run telecommunications companies from the exchange. The stock exchange late Monday had reversed its original plans, announced last week, to delist the companies to comply with an executive order from the administration aimed at stopping American investment in companies linked to the Chinese military. Monday’s sudden reversal by the exchange sowed confusion and reflected the ongoing fighting within the Trump administration about how hard a line to take against China during President Trump’s final days in office. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has been pushing for greater accommodation for Chinese companies, while officials in the Department of Defense have argued that the companies in question must be delisted for national security reasons. The Big Board said late on Monday that it had halted plans to delist the companies after consulting with the Treasury Department.

Source: International New York Times January 05, 2021 23:29 UTC