October 26, 2026

The US Treasury recently released a revised proposed rule on outbound investment restrictions inviting public comments through December 7. In addition to the existing restricted sectors of semiconductor technologies and microelectronics, artificial intelligence systems and quantum information technologies, the proposal seeks to bring supercomputing and hypersonic systems under more detailed controls, while adding biotechnology to the list and designating China and other countries as "countries of concern." 

On October 24, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) responded to "a recent US Treasury proposal that would expand and intensify restrictions on outbound investment in China," calling it a discriminatory move and a typical practice of overstretching the concept of national security. The proposed rules "run counter to the important consensus reached by the two heads of state," the MOFCOM spokesperson said. China will closely follow further developments and reserve the right to retaliate, the spokesperson noted.

The steady tightening of US investment controls is an attempt to contain China's emerging industries by stretching the concept of national security beyond its proper bounds. From the 2023 executive order to the expansion of the scope of restrictions through congressional legislation in 2025, and now the addition of biotechnology, the underlying logic remains consistent: to slow China's technological progress by cutting off capital flows. 

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https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202610/1372942.shtml