US preparing fresh sanctions on Chinese officials - report

Washington is looking to impose further sanctions on a number of Chinese officials over the political crackdown in Hong Kong, it was reported on Monday.

According to Reuters, the US wants to impose the restrictions on “at least” a dozen officials over their alleged role in Beijing’s disqualification of elected opposition legislators in Hong Kong. Reuters cited three unnamed sources, one of whom was reported to be a US official familiar with the matter.

Those targeted are likely to be officials in the National People’s Congress and members of the Chinese Communist Party, both in Hong Kong and from the mainland. Measures could include asset freezes and financial sanctions, Reuters said.

In response to a question from Reuters, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told a press briefing in Beijing on Monday: “China has always firmly opposed and strongly condemned US interference in China’s domestic affairs through the Hong Kong issue.”

Neither the State Department nor the White House have yet commented.

David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets, said: “Chinese stocks that are listed in the US, such as Alibaba, NIO and JD.com, are likely to see a rise in volatility on the back of rising tension between the US and China.

“This comes a few days after the US authorities revealed new legislation that would require foreign companies to have more transparent accounting practices if they want to list on US stock exchanges, something that Beijing didn’t welcome.”

Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at IG, said: “Reports that the US is set to impose sanctions on a handful of Chinese individuals have done little to lift sentiment globally…[and] sets a sour tone for the incoming Biden administration. Weakness in Asian markets has been transferred through to much of Europe, with Donald Trump seemingly happy to spend his final weeks in office proving he is no soft touch.

“However, ultimately the brevity of Trump’s remaining tenure should ensure that US-China relations reset in just six weeks’ time.”

President-elect Joe Biden takes over from Trump on 20 January.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed down 1% on Monday, while Shanghai’s SSE Index finished just under 1% lower. In London, the FTSE 100 recovered from an earlier slip to be trade largely flat by 1050 GMT, at 6,568.6.