China Blocks TikTok Asset Sale Due to Trump’s Tariffs

The deal for the sale of TikTok’s American assets has been suspended after China announced it would not approve the agreement due to tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. The suspension follows a series of negotiations between US officials and TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, with the deal nearly finalising earlier this week.

According to reports from Bloomberg and The Washington Post, the discussions had been ongoing for several months, with US officials preparing for a major announcement on Wednesday, April 3, 2025. This deal would have seen TikTok’s American assets sold to a majority of US investors, with the Chinese company ByteDance retaining a minority stake below 20%. This would have brought the platform into compliance with US law, which requires that any foreign company controlling a significant share of TikTok in the US must divest in order to avoid a potential ban on the app.

White House officials had planned to release an official statement on the deal by April 5, in an effort to prevent a ban on the social media platform. A decree from Trump was expected, which would have allowed for the completion of the deal within 120 days. However, these plans quickly unravelled following Trump’s announcement on April 2, 2025, that the US would impose increased tariffs on goods from various trading partners, including China. Under the new tariffs, the overall rate for many Chinese imports was raised to 54%.

ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, responded swiftly, warning that Beijing would no longer approve the sale unless the tariff situation was resolved. This move escalated tensions between China and the US, leading to retaliatory measures from Beijing.

As the deal faltered, Trump announced on April 4 that he would extend the deadline for reaching an agreement by an additional 75 days. This extension comes after the deal to sell TikTok’s US operations seemed close to completion, but the heightened trade tensions have complicated the final approval process. ByteDance also confirmed for the first time that it is still in talks with the US government, stating that while key issues remain unresolved, any final agreement would need to comply with Chinese law.

In his post, Trump reiterated his belief that China could help facilitate the sale by offering approval in exchange for tariff relief. The American president suggested that a reduction in tariffs could incentivise China to give the green light for the sale, potentially clearing the way for the transaction to proceed.