China says Xiaomi removal from U.S. blacklist "beneficial"

China’s commerce ministry has welcomed the removal of Xiaomi Corp. from a U.S. government blacklist, a day after the U.S. reversed a ban on U.S. investments in the smartphone maker imposed by former President Donald Trump

HONG KONG -- China’s commerce ministry on Thursday welcomed the removal of Xiaomi Corp. from a U.S. government blacklist, a day after the U.S. reversed a ban on U.S. investments in the smartphone maker that was imposed under former President Donald Trump. “China has always believed that removing sanctions and restrictions and stopping suppression of Chinese companies will benefit China, the United States, and the world,” Gao Feng, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce, said at a news briefing Thursday. Xiaomi, a Beijing-based company known for its value-for-money smartphones and smart devices, was added to a Defense Department blacklist in January this year in the last few days of the Trump administration, which accused it of links to China’s military. U.S. investors were ordered to divest their stakes held in Xiaomi by November.