Beijing slams Biden's curbs on firms

China on Friday expressed opposition to United States President Joe Biden's expansion of restrictions on investments in certain Chinese companies and vowed to take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate rights of Chinese enterprises.

Biden signed an executive order on Thursday that prohibits US citizens from owning or trading any securities tied to 59 companies, citing alleged ties to China's military and the so-called threat posed by Chinese surveillance technology.

The order is viewed as an amendment to the Trump administration's previous one with a list of 48 firms. It came after two Chinese companies successfully challenged Trump's move in a US court, Bloomberg reported.

The US government has abused the concept of national security and state power and "unscrupulously suppressed and restricted Chinese companies", Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a daily news briefing.

The move severely disrupted normal market rules and order, Wang said, adding that it not only undermined the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies but also hurt the interests of global investors, including those in the US.

The US should respect the rule of law and the market, revoke these so-called lists that suppress China, and provide a fair, just and nondiscriminatory business environment for Chinese companies, he said.

"China will take necessary measures to firmly safeguard Chinese enterprises' legitimate rights and interests and support them in defending their rights and interests according to law," he added.

Among the 59 blacklisted companies are Huawei Technologies Co, Aero Engine Corp of China, Aerosun Corp and Fujian Torch Electron Technology.

The prohibitions on investment in the companies take effect on Aug 2, and investors will have one year to fully divest.

Bloomberg quoted a Hikvision spokesperson as saying on Friday that "with no justification for previous lists, the US government keeps finding creative ways to continue targeting Hikvision simply because we happen to be headquartered in China".