4 Chinese Nationals Face Deportation After Defrauding US Retailers Out of $1 Million

welcome to China in Focus i'm Tiffany Meyer our top story ICE for Chinese nationals are slated for deportation after serving their prison sentences details on how they lifted social security numbers to defraud US retailers out of over $1 million the White House clarifies the new total US tariffs on China a whopping 145% meanwhile the US Treasury Secretary says the White House isn't ruling out the possibility of delisting Chinese stocks well Maria I think everything's on the table china picking up a new strategy to hit back against US tariffs this time targeting Hollywood movies but does Beijing's move have teeth the owner of Facebook and Instagram in the hot seat did Meta undermine US national security to do business in China a former executive with the company testified before the Senate i watched as executives decided to provide the Chinese Communist Party with access to meta-user data including that of Americans and our practices by the Chinese Communist Party exploiting American retirees senate and House committees hold a joint hearing to discuss just that the CCP is actively using its financial system and state controlled companies to infiltrate American capital markets welcome to China in Focus i'm Tiffany Meyer before we dive into today's news make sure to use the link down below to subscribe to our newsletter each week we round up the highlights and controversies happening around China and the world and share an exclusive behind thescenes snapshot with our readers keep an eye out the newsletter will land in your inbox Friday morning four Chinese nationals are facing deportation after serving prison sentences in the US that's for defrauding American retailers out of over $1 million those retailers include popular beauty shops Sephora and Ulta as well as retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue Macy's and Nordstrom the Chinese national stole personal information from hundreds of victims including social security numbers dates of birth and home addresses they use that stolen information to create fake driver licenses to access credit in the victim's names at these large retailers posting on X ICE said Wednesday that after the Chinese nationals served their time for fraud the agency would take them back into ICE custody to face removal proceedings the former Chinese nationals were sentenced to 12 to 42 months behind bars a fifth co-conspirator was previously sentenced to more than four years in prison and a sixth defendant is awaiting sentencing the investigation into the case is ongoing ice agents said the individuals had entered the United States under false pretenses zooming out the United States has sent five charter flights to China in the past eight months carrying hundreds of Chinese illegal immigrants the White House is clarifying where the US China trade tensions stand saying that as of now the total US tariff rate on Chinese goods stands at a massive 145% the White House noted that the breakdown includes the 125% rate hike in recent days in light of Beijing's retaliatory duties the 145% total also includes an earlier 20% imposed on Chinese goods earlier this year that measure was in response to China's role in allowing fentinel to flood the US in comparison Trump offered a 90-day tariff pause Wednesday for most other trading partners countries that did not retaliate and reached out to negotiate they'll see tariff rates sink back down to the new 10% baseline exceptions to that are Mexico and Canada who still face 25% tariffs but goods compliant with a trade deal called the USMCA can still enter the US tariff-free minus a few sector specific tariffs Trump has imposed china on Thursday said its door for talks is open but added that Beijing will stand by its position quote until the end in the meantime the trade war between the US and China may go beyond tariffs in an interview with Fox News Treasury Secretary Scott Besson didn't rule out the possibility of delisting Chinese stocks how far are you willing to take this in terms of this soft war with China we've got Chinese stocks trading on US exchanges uh you know US investors are buying those stocks and that's helping China fund its military let's face it are you willing to go that far to remove Chinese stocks from US exchanges uh well uh Maria I think everything's on the table we are talking about the capital export capital controls in terms of you know as you said the a a blacklist of things uh that US uh whether pension funds endowments investors should not be investing in to fund the Chinese military machine so but that'll be President Trump's decision and according to the latest US government data nearly 300 Chinese companies are listed in the US and they're worth over 1 trillion dollars combined it's raising concerns that US investment dollars could end up helping the Chinese military or Beijing's espionage and censorship apparatus all of those possibilities go against US national interests but still delisting Chinese stocks would worsen the tensions between the two superpowers even so President Trump is no stranger to the tactic in 2021 he signed an executive order urging the New York Stock Exchange to remove listings of three Chinese state-run entities China Telecom China Mobile and China Unicom citing their close ties to Communist China's military but the US has never delisted the stocks of an entire nation while the future of Chinese stocks in the US remains uncertain Besson said the Treasury is working on further restricting exports of high-v value security related goods to China china now has Hollywood movies in its crosshairs as a form of retaliation against US tariffs china's film administration think Thursday that it plans to import fewer American films because the US hiked tariff rates on China china is the world's second largest movie market the country only imports about 10 Hollywood movies every year a level of market access that hasn't changed much in three decades hollywood films make up about 5% of China's box office revenue critics say Hollywood has appeased the Chinese regime to make sure it keeps its access to the massive market one noteworthy example a report from Paname said in the original film Top Gun Tom Cruz had Taiwanese and Japanese flag patches on his leather jacket but these two flags were replaced by lookalikes in the 2019 sequel trailer on the other hand the Pentagon has taken steps to discourage Hollywood from catering to Beijing the DoD said it will no longer collaborate with movie studio directors that comply or plan to comply with Beijing censorship demands just to get their movies distributed there australia's prime minister said Australia will not join hands with the Chinese regime when it comes to rejecting US tariffs he noted that Australia has its own voice watch Minister um will Australia join hands with China as the ambassador has suggested against tariffs we we engage with all countries but we stand up for Australia's national interest and um we stand on on our own two feet and I have said very clearly uh we cooperate with China where we can we disagree where we must but we engage in our national interest the country's deputy prime minister also weighed in saying the Australian government is not about to make common cause with China in any contest going on in the world and that Australia has its own interests and will focus on diversifying its trade relationships the politicians were responding to the Chinese ambassador to Australia's overture to unite against the US in response to tariffs most countries are in the same position as Australia with a 10% tariff on exports to the US that's a stark contrast to the 145% tariff imposed on China president Trump said the heavy tariff is due to China's lack of respect for world markets a former executive at Meta which owns Facebook and Instagram says the company undermined US national security in order to do business in China ntd's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley has some more on Wednesday's testimony before the Senate when Beijing demanded that Facebook delete the account of a prominent Chinese dissident living on American soil they did it sarah Wyn Williams Facebook's former director of global public policy accused Meta of censoring a Chinese dissident on US soil on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party yet I witnessed Meta work handin glove with the Chinese Communist Party to construct and test custombuilt censorship tools that silenced and censored their critics she also says Meta is putting the data of its users at risk i watched as executives decided to provide the Chinese Communist Party with access to meta user data including that of Americans following the hearing a Meta spokesperson told me in an email responding to these allegations quote "Sarah Win Williams testimonies divorced from reality and riddled with false claims." While Mark Zuckerberg himself was public about our interest in offering our services to China and details were widely reported beginning over a decade ago the fact is this we do not operate our services in China today but Win Williams disputes this is that true facebook Meta is not doing business in China is that accurate that is not accurate Chairman Holy um Facebook has a $18.3 billion business in China and to give just one example in 2014 it uh launched Oculus in China with a strategy of playing dumb and her allegations are being investigated by the bipartisan group of senators that she's testifying in front of that's the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism that's why this committee has launched a full-scale investigation into the potential illegal behavior of Facebook today's hearing is one step in that investigation meta chooses to put human rights concerns aside if it means access to more users more growth more dollars the senators have requested copies of all communications between Meta and Beijing since 2014 and they hope to get it by April 21st reporting by Jack Bradley NTD News are American retirees getting ripped off by China an update from another hearing sought to tackle the issue this week this time held by both Senate and House committees lawmakers focused on exploitive practices used by the Chinese Communist Party against American retirees including how the CCP masks investment risks and undermines shareholder rights ntd correspondent Jason Blair reports americans work way too hard to have their financial security destroyed by Communist China protecting American retirees and seniors from exploitive practices by the Chinese Communist Party was the focus of a hearing in Congress in a rare occurrence committees from both the House and Senate held a joint hearing the House Select Committee on the CCP and the Senate Aging Committee probed the risks of investing in Chinese companies the CCP is actively using its financial system and state controlled companies to infiltrate American capital markets and while some might see that as just another investment risk it's much more than that mulanar gave an example in 2021 the CCP abruptly imposed sweeping regulations on China's private education sector banning profit-making foreign capital and public listings that decision wiped out billions of dollars in US investments almost overnight shark Tank star Kevin Olirri was invited as a witness and he warns investors of the threats posed by the CCP i have nothing against the Chinese people their contributions to science and art over the millennia are well documented it's their government I take issue with in my opinion since joining the WTO in 2000 the Chinese government has never played by its rules another expert witness says that the CCP has a long-term multiaceted political economic and military strategy to advance itself the goal is to create a new world order through economic coercion and manipulation while avoiding a hot war this has left the world less open and more authoritarian senate Aging Committee ranking member Kristen Gillibrand says online scams from China are targeting American seniors criminal networks in China that are so sophisticated that know this is where they can make millions and millions of dollars house Committee on the CCP ranking member Raja Krishna Morphy says that a lot of these criminal gangs are directly tied to the CCP another gentleman behind another scam city seen here with a Burmese warlord is Shuh Jang he is wanted in China for financial crimes but his ties to the CCP allowed him to operate freely for years before being detained by Thai authorities and witness Brady Finta founder of the National Elder Fraud Justice Coordination Center says that according to his experience only 10 to 15% of elder fraud victims report the crimes reporting in Washington DC Jason Blair NTD News coming up US consumer prices unexpectedly fell in March but will the improvement remain after President Trump doubled down on tariffs on imported Chinese goods the US and Panama signed new defense and security agreements aimed at deepening US military training in Panama the goal to push back against China's influence in the region and Ukrainian intelligence has identified 155 Chinese citizens fighting for Russia in its war two of them were captured by Ukraine more on that after the break here on China in Focus welcome back to China in Focus i'm Tiffany Meyer us consumer prices unexpectedly fell in March amid cheaper gasoline and used motor vehicles but it remains to be seen if the improvement in inflation will hold after President Donald Trump doubled down on tariffs on imported Chinese goods let's dive in us consumer prices in March fell for the first time in nearly 5 years according to a report from the Labor Department on Thursday the consumer price index dipped.1% last month economists pulled by Reuters had expected it to edge up by that amount it was the first monthly decline in prices since May of 2020 putting the annual inflation rate at 2.4% closer to the Federal Reserve's target of 2% but will the downward trend continue march's data likely captured only a fraction of the first wave of President Trump's barrage of import duties which most economists expect to be inflationary lower prices could also be a sign of softening consumer demand amid heightened recession fears due to Trump's tariffs trump on Wednesday said he paused targeted tariffs on trade partners for 90 days but a 10% blanket duty on almost all imports remains in place in light of the current 145% tariffs on China consultancy firm Capital Economics estimated that US inflation will peak at about 4% that's double the Fed's target meeting minutes from the central bank's March policy gathering were published Wednesday they showed Fed officials almost unanimously agree that the economy faces both higher inflation risks and slower growth and how do Americans feel about the new tariffs ntd Sam Wong was out on the National Mall in DC to hear from them how are President Trump's terrorists impacting you and where do you think this is all going well I think they're a necessary evil we need to get even with the rest of the world and we need to bring jobs back to America i've lost 20 30% of my value in my investment portfolio i go to the grocery store i thought that things would get better but they're getting worse yeah i think it's just bringing people to the negotiating table which it's already happening now and I believe it'll all sort itself out within the next six seven weeks the stock market's going to come back the world's going to get back to a better place but we'll be on equal footing with the rest of the world i don't think it's impacted me as far as right now considering fair trade whenever we look at what other people are charging for American products to come to their uh countries compared to what we're charging for them to bring stuff in here i think it's only fair for us to have at least equal you know tariffs across the board the White House is now saying that dozens of countries are already coming to the negotiating table so how do you assess President Trump's strategy here they have to come to the table the the United States puts too much money out into the world to not get it all back and these other countries are just quietly making cash off of us i think he's a brilliant dealmaker and I think it brought them to the table and I think he'll negotiate with them i think someone had to do it uh for the sake of America cuz they their all their manufacturing was going downhill i want him to do well i want every president to do well but taking 20 to 30% off of people's life savings and investments is not doing things right for people i think in the end you'll have done the right thing as of today what 62 countries have reached out to say look we're ready to negotiate changes in our tariffs which that's all it should be fair and equal trade across the board not someone getting charged to pay charge you more for bringing your products in have everybody have a good economy president Trump yesterday he said he's going to impose an additional 50% tariffs on China that's if China doesn't pull back its 34% retaliatory duties on the United States sure so what do you make of this whole uh uh you know back and forth it's going to be who outlasts who the longest but in the long run they're going to have to come to the table too china's got their whole economy to lose i mean they're they're not getting real good at the moment as it is i think they need us more than we need them but we're going to have to get used to paying a little bit more for something for a while but it it should be done and it only seems fair why we're trying to change this is so that more manufacturing could be happen here so we aren't because there is no forced labor laws here there's not I I think it's wrong what Chinese people are having to deal with over there be paid quarters and dimes and and and children labor and stuff like that wrong everybody deserves a fair equal right to live and live prosperous that's what I agree with the United States recognizes Panama sovereignty over the Panama Canal that's the message from Panama on Wednesday the two nations just announced new defense and security agreements to deepen US military training in Panama defense Secretary BGA said these agreements are essential for countering China's expanding influence in the region he also noted that the canal is a key strategic point that Panama would secure together with the US not with China here's more we certainly understand that the Panama Canal is in Panama uh and protecting Panameanian sovereignty from malign influence is important which is why when President Trump says we're taking back the Panama Canal from Chinese influence that involves partnership with the United States and Panama the US and Panama issued joint statements about deepening security cooperation it reaffirms Panama's sovereignty and details new military cooperation hegath said he is grateful Panama welcomed US troops to conduct joint rotational exercises in the country he said earlier this week that the US will take back the Panama Canal from China's influence two ports of the Panama Canal are controlled by the Hong Kong based company CK Hutchinson the US firm Black Rockck was supposed to sign a deal to buy the two ports from the company last week but Beijing intervened delaying the deal ukrainian President Vladimir Zalinsky said Wednesday that Ukrainian intelligence has identified 155 Chinese citizens fighting for Russia after two Chinese nationals were captured in the country here's more on what's happening zilinsky said the Chinese nationals captured in eastern Ukraine are in communication with investigators and are providing information on how they ended up on the front he said Russia recruited the two Chinese nationals and others through ads on social media a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry said the claims were groundless and has continued to deny its involvement in the war it's not clear if these Chinese soldiers are commercial soldiers or if they were sent to Russia by Beijing just as North Korea has done now to one of China's allies Iran entities involved in Iran's nuclear program are facing new sanctions by the US the Treasury Department said on Wednesday the sanctions target five entities and one individual based in Iran here's a breakdown those include the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran the Treasury describes it as Iran's leading organization for research and development in nuclear technology the new sanctions come ahead of a high level meeting between the United States and Iran on Saturday trump has said that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon that's all for today's China in Focus i'm Tiffany Meyer if you have any feedback on the show or have something you'd like to see us cover send us an email at chinainfocusentd.com we'd love to hear from you for round theclock original news coverage visit us at ntd.com or download our NTD app thanks for watching see you tomorrow