Shares of Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi plunged 11% on Friday morning after the Trump administration added it to a blacklist, forcing Americans to divest holdings and barring share purchases.
Why it matters: Xiaomi is the second-largest smartphone maker in the Chinese market and ranks fourth globally. The company has been caught in US-China geopolitical tensions for the first time, its troubles bearing resemblance to its main rival Huawei.
- However, Xiaomi is unlikely to face the same degree of US restrictions as Huawei, which has been essentially barred from the global high-end semiconductor supply chain. The Trump administration will end next week and there is no sign that it will place export restrictions on Xiaomi.
- A similar move against some Chinese telecom companies had led to their potential delisting from US stock markets. Xiaomi is listed in Hong Kong, indicating that the price plunge on Friday could be shareholder panic selling.
Details: The US Department of Defense on Thursday added Xiaomi and eight other Chinese firms to a list of “Communist Chinese military companies,” according to a statement on its website. An executive order signed by US President Donald Trump in November bans American investment in such companies.
- Other companies added to the list include Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, a state-backed aircraft maker; Gowin Semiconductor, a Guangzhou-based chip designer; and Beijing Zhongguancun Development Investment Center, a government-led venture capital firm.
- Shares of Xiaomi in Hong Kong dropped more than 11% on Friday morning.
- Xiaomi said in a statement Friday that it had confirmed that it is “not owned, controlled, or affiliated with the Chinese military,” and that the company’s products are all for “civilian and commercial use.”
- A Xiaomi representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
- US investors will be prohibited from buying Xiaomi shares and will have to divest their holdings by November, according to the executive order.
Context: Xiaomi shares reached a historical high of HKD 35.3 (around $4.6) on Jan. 5, driven by strong sales and a weakened Huawei. Market research firm Trendforce expects Xiaomi will be ranked the world’s third-largest smartphone vendor in 2021 while Huawei, which ranked third in last year, will fall to seventh this year.
- The Trump administration reportedly considered adding other Chinese tech giants including Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu into the investment blacklist. All three companies are listed on US stock markets.
- On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported that the US had decided to not to add them to the blacklist.
Update: This article has been updated to include a statement from Xiaomi and to correct a typographic error.