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Trump administration mulls okaying sales to Huawei: Report

San Francisco, Oct 10

Ahead of the next round of trade talks between Washington and Beijing, the Trump administration is mulling to issue licenses to some US firms that will let them sell non-sensitive equipment to Chinese telecom giant Huawei, the media reported on Thursday.

The decision to begin the process of approving licenses was made by President Donald Trump in a meeting last week, sources familiar with the matter said.

A license to do business with Huawei would allow companies to sidestep a ban his administration had placed on Huawei earlier this year, CNET reported quoting The New York Times.

The move is being said to be an act of goodwill as senior Chinese and US officials gather for trade talks on Thursday.

Business are reportedly hoping negotiators will agree on an interim or partial deal to prevent higher tariffs and additional duties on imports from China.

As of August, over 130 applications have reportedly been submitted to the Commerce Department for licenses to sell US goods to the Chinese tech giant.

The Trump administration said in June that some sales would be allowed under the licenses, but none has yet been issued, the CNET report added.

In May, the US government had placed a ban on Huawei and dozens of its affiliates, citing national security concerns.