With US-China tensions back on the upswing, is the TikTok deal at risk?
Analyst opinion mixed on viability of deal for Chinese short video app’s US ownership, with ‘everything on the table’ after recent flare-ups
A tentative deal for the management of Chinese short video app TikTok in the United States is facing new pressure after last week’s flare-up in trade tensions between Beijing and Washington, with analysts mixed in their assessment of the pact’s chances for survival.
“It’s probably quite hard to see that [deal] happening under such an atmosphere,” said Gary Ng, senior Asia-Pacific economist at Natixis.
“I don’t know whether it will collapse or go through … The biggest downside is the US could shut [the app] down and block access.”
A flurry of activity in recent weeks from both sides of the divide, most notably a widening of Beijing’s export controls related to rare earth elements – itself a response to the expansion of a US trade blacklist – and a subsequent threat from US President Donald Trump of an additional 100 per cent in tariffs on Chinese imports, has exacerbated the already strained ties between the world’s two largest economies.
And while the TikTok deal was not mentioned explicitly in the back-and-forth, these incidents and other flashpoints in the bilateral relationship could prevent the agreement from being finalised.