Chinese-linked companies were given loans totaling as much as $34 million in a program designed to help U.S. small businesses.
President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence, Cabinet members and senior legislators, signs H.R. 266 – the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act Friday, April 24, 2020, in the Oval Office of the White House. Credit: Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead
American-based affiliates of Chinese companies, including at least one firm with ties to the Chinese military, received millions of dollars in loans from a federal program aimed at keeping small businesses afloat during the global pandemic, according to data released this week.
Records reviewed by The Wire show that between $5 million and $10 million in federally backed funds were tapped by Continental Aerospace Technologies, a Mobile, Ala., firm that is a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, one of the country’s largest defense contractors. Two weeks ago, AVIC was named on a list the Pentagon compiled of companies affiliated with China’s People’s Liberation Army, or the PLA.
In April, a loan of as much as $2 million went to an affiliate of CloudMinds Technology, a Santa Clara, Calif.-based artificial intelligence and robotics firm that is backed by Japan’s Softbank, the venture capital firm, as well as two Chinese government funds managed by Ts
Exclusive longform investigative journalism, Q&As, news and analysis, and data on Chinese business elites and corporations. We publish China scoops you won't find anywhere else.
A weekly curated reading list on China from David Barboza, Pulitzer Prize-winning former Shanghai correspondent for The New York Times.
A daily roundup of China finance, business and economics headlines.
We offer discounts for groups, institutions and students. Go to our Subscriptions page for details.
Robert Lighthizer, the U.S. Trade Representative under Donald Trump, reflects on his decision to launch the trade war with China and begin the process of "strategic decoupling" — a process he says the U.S. must see through to the end.