The US has given Huawei another 90 day reprieve from its trade ban, according to the country’s commerce secretary Will Ross.
Ross noted that the reason for the extension isn’t because the US is growing fonder of Huawei, but because of rural companies in middle America.
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Smaller telecom companies are still weaning themselves off of Huawei’s telecoms products and find alternative suppliers, but they’ll now have a further three months to do just that.
There’s no saying if or when the US will suspend its trade ban against Huawei, especially after reports in July suggested positive sentiment between the US and Chinese leaders.
But if anything, the news also brought more hardship for the Chinese smartphone and telecoms giant.
Ross noted that an additional 46 of the company’s subsidiaries have been added to the ban list.
But Huawei’s perhaps now in a much better position today than it was in May, when it was placed on the trade blacklist.
The firm last week debuted its Harmony OS, an operating system that’ll likely form its backbone should the US pull support entirely, forcing it to use Android and Windows alternatives.
The company’s also looking to bolster its offerings and technologies in other sectors too, including mapping. It’ll lose access to Google services, including Maps, once the ban resumes.
Thanks to the reprieve, the US and Huawei’s bad blood will now be delayed until 18 November, a month in which we could also see the company’s first foldable smartphone make its appearance.
However, there’s no telling what’ll happen to Huawei after that.
Feature image: Huawei Mate X, by Andy Walker/Memeburn
