China is set to raise concerns over TikTok and WeChat in phase one trade negotiations, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
Washington and Beijing will hold virtual talks on agricultural goods and USD-Yuan exchange rates, among other topics, but has not set a date, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Further issues, including the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic, US-led ban on Huawei in the United Kingdom and Hong Kong national security bill have also remained contentious issues despite the trade talks, Bloomberg wrote.
The news comes after President Trump announced numerous bans on business dealings with Chinese social media platforms TikTok and WeChat via executive orders set to take effect on 15 September, citing national security risks.
Trump also demanded TikTok owner ByteDance to sell its US operations to Microsoft or other firm but give a "significant portion" of the sale to the Treasury, with the Chinese firm later saying it would sue Washington in California courts.
Despite this, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said at an event that there was "no evidence" of TikTok abusing user data and that Canberra had "a good look" at any possible security risks from the popular social media platform.
Chinese envoy to the US, Ciu Tiankai, blasted the Trump administration at the same event by stating forcing such a sale would violate US free market principles.
