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US export controls achieving no strategic gain but hurting American firms, survey finds
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Nayan Sethin WashingtonPublished: 12:38am, 12 Aug 2026Updated: 4:04am, 12 Aug 2026The Trump administration’s export-control licensing regime is achieving little strategic benefit while costing the United States billions of dollars in lost exports and undermining American companies’ global market share, according to a new business survey.
“Months-long licensing delays are costing the United States billions of dollars in exports and eroding American market share globally,” the US-China Business Council (USCBC) found in a flash survey of companies conducted in July.
The survey also found that most of the pending export licences are for items that are “already available in China from Chinese or international suppliers – effectively sidelining American companies for no strategic gain”.“Export controls are important, but if they are not calibrated, then they have the reverse effect,” Sean Stein, president of the US-China Business Council, told the South China Morning Post.
“They undermine US competitiveness, undermine US technological leadership while doing nothing to protect national security.”
11:24How does Trump’s latest fallout with traditional allies play into Beijing’s hands?USCBC is a non-profit association of around 270 American companies that conduct business in China. The latest flash survey covered 31 companies from the technology, industrial and manufacturing, energy, and healthcare sectors.AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed00:0000:001.00x