China to Blacklist ‘Unreliable’ Foreign Firms Amid Huawei Ordeal - Reports

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump added Huawei and its affiliates to a trade blacklist, restricting its activities in the US and forcing American firms to seek permission to deal with the Chinese telecommunications giant.

China's Commerce Ministry spokesperson, Gao Feng, said on Friday that Beijing would move to create its own blacklist containing "unreliable" foreign enterprises and individuals.    

According to the official, foreign firms and individuals that fail to comply with market regulations and substantially damage the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies will be included in a list of "unreliable entities".    

Gao added that China will announce additional details regarding its list in the near future.    

READ MORE: Court Motion: Does Huawei Have Any Chances to Nix US Ban as Unconstitutional?

The announcement of the blacklist comes just a day ahead of China's plan to increase tariffs on $60 billion of US goods, expected to come into force on Saturday.    

The move comes in retaliation to President Trump's decision to punish China with levies on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods earlier this month.    

Tensions between the United States and China have spiked recently after Washington barred Huawei equipment from its domestic market and tried to pressure its European allies to do the same. The US justified its actions by claiming that Huawei is working with the Chinese government and installing backdoors in its equipment on behalf of Beijing.    

Both Beijing and Huawei have vehemently dismissed the American accusations as false. The Chinese tech giant has filed a suit against the US government over the ban.