Hong Kong (AFP)

Xiaomi's stock price fell on Friday when the Hong Kong Stock Exchange opened, after the Chinese phone maker was blacklisted by the United States of companies.

This last-minute listing of Chinese companies subject to sanctions is the ultimate realization of four years of diplomatic tensions between Beijing and Washington under the presidency of Donald Trump.

With just six days of the end of the outgoing US president's term, authorities have made a series of announcements targeting Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, but also popular video platform TikTok and oil giant CNOOC.

Xiaomi, which overtook Apple by becoming the world's third-largest smartphone maker in 2020, is one of nine Chinese companies to be blacklisted, due to their alleged ties to the Chinese military.

This measure means that American investors will no longer be able to buy Xiaomi shares and will even have to dispose of them unless future President Joe Biden backs down.

Xiaomi is one of the largest Chinese companies to be blacklisted and soon after the announcement its stock plunged 11% when the Hong Kong Stock Exchange opened on Friday.

In a statement, the US Department of Defense said it was "determined to highlight and counter the PRC's civil-military fusion development strategy" that would allow it to access essential data in terms of technology and security.

Similar sanctions were decided by Washington, targeting in particular the Chinese smartphone maker Huawei and the chip giant Smic, thus hampering their ability to import key technologies and to be competitive internationally.

- South China Sea -

In November, Donald Trump's administration issued an executive order banning Americans from investing in Chinese companies believed to be supplying or supporting the Chinese military to prevent them from accessing American technology.

China immediately denounced the measure, accusing the United States of "harassment" and promising to "take the necessary measures" to defend the rights of Chinese companies.

In early January, the New York Stock Exchange announced its decision to delist three Chinese companies in the telecoms sector after receiving "new specific instructions" from the US Department of the Economy.

Another list, compiled by the Commerce Department, also prohibits Chinese companies, including the Chinese national oil group CNOOC and Skyrizon, which specializes in the airline sector, from being eligible for stock market indices on Wall Stret.

For US companies, these measures make it harder to export technology products to companies on this list.

The State Department has also restricted the granting of visas granted to executives of blacklisted Chinese companies, government officials and military personnel.

US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said oil group CNOOC is on the list because of "its reckless and belligerent actions in the South China Sea and its aggressive policy of acquiring technology and intellectual property rights. sensitive for military purposes ".

According to him, this "constitutes a threat to the national security of the United States and the security of the international community".

The South China Sea, a key route for global maritime trade, one of the richest in marine resources and biodiversity, is at the heart of the escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington.

"CNOOC has repeatedly threatened the exploration and extraction of oil and gas in the South China Sea, with the aim of increasing political risk for interested foreign partners, including Vietnam," the ministry said. Trade.

CNOOC's share price was not affected by the news on Friday, it was up 0.12% in Hong Kong.

© 2021 AFP