Trump says China stalled last TikTok deal after US tariffs

Donald Trump said Sunday that a group of “very wealthy people” are ready to take TikTok off China’s hands.

Speaking during an interview with Maria Bartiromo on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures, the US President didn’t name a single buyer but claimed he’ll reveal who they are “in about two weeks.”

He made clear the deal is waiting on approval from the Chinese government, and he said he believes President Xi Jinping “will probably do it.”

This interview comes just weeks after Trump extended the TikTok divestment deadline to September 17. The law passed in 2024 gave China-based ByteDance until January 19 to sell its US TikTok assets or show real progress toward doing so. If neither happens, the app has to shut down in the US Trump has already granted three deadline extensions since returning to the White House.

Trump says China stalled last deal after US tariffs

A deal had almost happened earlier this year. The plan would have turned TikTok’s American operations into a new company, fully based in the United States and controlled mostly by American investors.

But right after Trump imposed steep tariffs on Chinese imports, China refused to approve the setup. The deal died right there. Beijing didn’t make any public statement rejecting it—but the silence was enough. Nothing moved forward.

Trump, still speaking to Bartiromo, repeated that the current buyers are “ready,” but stressed again that “China’s approval” is probably needed. He said, “I think President Xi will probably do it,” referring to the Chinese head of state. Trump didn’t give any timeline beyond his two-week teaser. But if the Chinese government blocks it again, the clock runs out in January.

He also made a point to say the app helped him with “young voters” during the last election. Trump believes TikTok boosted his numbers in 2024 and says he’s not ignoring that influence as he pushes for the sale.

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