Tencent Shares Fall As Trump Targets WeChat

Tech giant Tencent's shares fell more than 4% in Hong Kong on Friday morning following President Donald Trump's orders to ban WeChat-related US transactions.

The orders come as the Trump administration said this week it was stepping up efforts to purge "untrusted" Chinese apps from US digital networks and called the Chinese-owned short-video app TikTok and messenger app WeChat "significant threats".

Tump issued the orders under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law that grants the administration sweeping power to bar US firms or citizens from trading or conducting financial transactions with sanctioned parties.

US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross will identify transactions covered by the prohibition after the order takes effect in mid-September. The order leaves key unanswered questions about the restrictions.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced a programme called "Clean Network" that would focus on five areas and include steps to prevent various Chinese apps.

James Lewis, a technology expert with the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said the moves appeared coordinated with Pompeo's Wednesday announcement.

"This is the rupture in the digital world between the US and China," he said. "Absolutely, China will retaliate."

Lewis said there are only about 3 million WeChat users in the United States and they are mostly Chinese.

"It's much more a collection risk than TikTok. On the other hand, it is collecting on Chinese," Lewis said. (Reuters)