U.S. adds units of China's BGI, Inspur to trade blacklist (updated)

BGI AD

02/03/2023 22:46

(Adds Inspur, no immediate comment)
    By Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson
       March 2 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Thursday
added two units of prominent Chinese genetics company BGI
 300676.SZ  and Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur to a trade
blacklist, a move that promises to further ratchet up tensions
with Beijing.  
    The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls,
added BGI Research and BGI Tech Solutions (Hongkong), over
allegations the firms pose a "significant risk" to contributing
to Chinese government surveillance used to repress ethnic
minorities.  
    It accused Inspur of acquiring and attempting to acquire
U.S. goods to support China's military modernization efforts.
        The companies and the Chinese embassy in Washington did
not immediately respond to requests for comment. 
  
    Twenty-six other Chinese entities were also added to the
list, which makes it hard for targeted companies to receive
shipments of U.S. goods from suppliers.
    The move looks set to further escalate ill will between
Washington and Beijing, which have been locked in a technology
war for years. Tensions have been especially high since the
Biden administration last month shot down a suspected Chinese
spy balloon that had crossed a broad swath of the United States.
    In 2020, the Commerce Department added two units of BGI
Group, the world’s largest genomics company, to its economic
blacklist over allegations it conducted genetic analyses used to
further the repression of China’s minority Uyghurs. 
    Beijing has denied wrongdoing. BGI denied allegations of
wrongdoing at the time.

 (Reporting by Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson; Editing by
Leslie Adler and Deepa Babington)
 ((David.Shepardson@thomsonreuters.com; 2028988324;))