HONG KONG — China has suspended a policy that would have effectively pushed foreign technology companies out of the country’s banking sector, according to a note sent by Chinese regulators to banks.

Dated Monday, the letter called for banks to “suspend implementation” of the rules, which have been at the center of a brewing trade conflict between the United States and China. The rules, put into effect at the end of last year, called for companies that sell computer equipment to Chinese banks to turn over intellectual property and submit source code, in addition to other demands.

At stake is billions of dollars of business for major American companies that make the advanced computing hardware and software that crunches numbers for banks across China. Trade groups representing companies including Microsoft, IBM and Apple have complained that such policies are protectionist.

Yet the development is only a small reprieve for American tech companies. The suspension is temporary as authorities revise the rules. It is unclear how regulators will change the rules, but industry officials say a new version — even if it avoids more contentious issues like forcing the disclosure of source code — will still be problematic to multinational tech companies.