5G technology is the future of the data economy, destined to provide the communications network that will support technologies like driverless cars and AI. The US President Donald Trump deems 5G as critical to national security. In March 2018, he blocked Broadcom from acquiring Qualcomm (QCOM), a leader in 5G technology, as the former was based in Singapore.

Now, Trump has banned US firms from selling and transferring 5G-related technology to Huawei and its affiliates alleging that China is using Huawei for espionage. Huawei denied these claims and agreed to work with the US government to implement effective product security measures.