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US should expand investment restriction on Chinese company to protect investors and national security, government advisory panel says

  • Commission says that the US should require additional risk disclosures from Chinese companies as well as from US brokerage firms
  • The group says Beijing’s crackdown on technology companies has led to billions of dollars in losses for US investors

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Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Monday. Photo: Getty Images via AFP
The US government should expand investment restrictions on Chinese companies to protect American investors and national security, a leading advisory panel on China policy said in an annual review on Wednesday.
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The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), an independent government panel set up in October 2000, said Beijing’s crackdown on technology companies – many of which are listed on US exchanges – led to billions of dollars in losses for US investors.

The commission said that the US should require additional risk disclosures from Chinese companies as well as from US brokerage firms to protect American investors from regulatory uncertainties.

The Treasury Department should put together a report each year on portfolio investments by US investors in Chinese companies, it added. The list should include US capital in specific Chinese industries, the types of US institutions that invest in Chinese firms, and any exposure to Chinese businesses on US blacklists.

The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission report noted that as of May 5, about 248 Chinese companies were listed in the US with a total market capitalisation of US$2.1 trillion. Photo: Reuters
The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission report noted that as of May 5, about 248 Chinese companies were listed in the US with a total market capitalisation of US$2.1 trillion. Photo: Reuters
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“Our recommendations are not designed to prevent American businesses from investing in Chinese businesses,” said Bob Borochoff, a commissioner of the panel, on Wednesday. “They are designed to give Americans an opportunity to know what they are investing in and to prevent Americans from investing, inadvertently, in forbidden businesses.”

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