Huawei isn’t about to get a reprieve from the US trade ban any time soon. President Trump has extended until May 2021 the executive order barring American companies from buying and using telecom equipment that represents an “unacceptable” national security risk. The order was key to the Commerce Department adding Huawei to its Entity List and effectively banning the tech giant (along with rivals like ZTE) from operating in the country.
It’s not shocking that the order would carry on for a while longer. Trump and legislators have continued to kick Huawei out of US networks whenever possible, and tensions with China remain high. However, this still leaves Huawei and peers without many options. They’ll have to avoid dealing with US companies, of course, but this will also force them to go without Google apps on newer phones and otherwise jump through hoops to maintain some of their business. In short: don’t expect to buy a Huawei phone stateside any time soon.