Podcast #8: The Unreliable Entity List, China's Tit-for-Tat Retaliation

June 05, 2020 | BY

Vincent Chow

U.S. companies in China are caught between the cross hairs of both the Chinese and U.S. governments

Share:

The China-U.S. trade and tech war has heated up significantly in recent weeks as the U.S. has ramped up export controls and made moves on Hong Kong. In this episode, Lester Ross and Kenneth Zhou discuss China's "unreliable entity list," widely considered China's main retaliatory weapon against U.S. companies. They analyze the potential legal bases for the List, the possible consequences for those companies listed, as well as lobbying efforts by American companies in both Beijing and Washington D.C.

For the full podcast, click here to listen on Soundcloud and here on Apple Podcasts.

Lester Ross is head of WilmerHale's Beijing office. He is also Chair of AmCham China's Policy Committee as well as the Insurance Forum. Kenneth Zhou is also a partner at the firm's Beijing office, and he is on AmCham China's Board of Governors.

The China Law Podcast is a weekly podcast exploring China's business and financial sectors from a legal perspective, hosted by Vincent Chow. Get in touch at [email protected] with any feedback and ideas for future episodes.

Episode outline

  • 01:14 U.S. restrictions on Chinese companies through various blacklists
  • 04:26 Potential legal bases for the List under Chinese law
  • 07:35 Potential consequences for listed companies including formal and informal punishments
  • 11:05 Why the tech industry is most likely to be targeted
  • 12:48 How recent events might accelerate publication of the List
  • 15:18 China and U.S. response to U.S. business complaints
  • 19:20 Will U.S. companies leave China as a result?

Related articles