Huawei on Monday said the third round of 90-day extensions for licenses that will allow American companies to continue doing business with the Chinese tech giant won't really change much of how the company is being treated.
According to the South China Morning Post, Huawei said in a statement shortly after the extension was announced that the move "does not change the fact that Huawei continues to be treated unfairly."
China's tech crown jewel also noted that the White House's decision won't really have a "substantial impact" on how the company is doing business at the moment. It is worth noting that the tech equipment provider still did well over the past three quarters despite the U.S. ban.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the decision was made to allow for carriers working with Huawei to continue serving customers in areas around the country that are otherwise remote.
Ross said the commerce department will continue to monitor technology products and exports to ensure that there are no threats to national security. Ross' statements came amid allegations that Huawei's equipment may have backdoors for spying.
Ever since the company was blacklisted by Washington in May, multiple American firms collaborating with Huawei have raised concerns about the costs of losing business with China's leading tech firm.
A large fraction of the company's suppliers are from the United States, and last year, 19 suppliers made a combined revenue of $14.2 billion from Huawei's purchases. The numbers are expected to drop this year.
Among the American tech greats that expressed concerns about the U.S. government's decision on blacklisting Huawei is Microsoft. The U.S. laptop giant has already applied for an individual license to sell products to its Chinese counterpart.
According to CNN, Microsoft President Brad Smith said last month that the company thinks the national security grounds for which the Chinese tech giant was blacklisted are not enough.
Smith went on to explain that by pressuring Huawei to become a company completely independent of U.S. tech equipment and products would actually pose a threat to the American tech industry as a whole.
The tech executive noted that temporary licenses aren't helping much in terms of business. He said the ban "has done significant economic harm" to U.S. firms cooperating with China's top tech company.
Some industry experts noted that the reprieve for Huawei came after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested in a previous statement that the Chinese tech company could be included in the elusive trade deal with China.
It remains to be seen whether Huawei's fate will be included in the phase one trade deal that is expected to be signed by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping before year-end.
