China bans Apple products from government purchases: Report

BEIJING: China’s government excluded Apple iPads and MacBook laptops from the list of products that can be bought with public money because of security concerns, according to government officials familiar with the matter.

Ten Apple products — including the iPad, iPad Mini, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro — were omitted from a final government procurement list distributed in July, according to officials who read it and asked not to be identified.

The models were on a June version of the list drafted by the National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Finance, the officials said. Apple is the latest US technology company to be excluded from Chinese government purchases amid escalating tensions between the countries over claims of hacking and cyberspying.

China’s procurement agency told departments to stop buying antivirus software from Symantec and Kaspersky Lab, while Microsoft was shut out of a government purchase of energyefficient computers. The heightened scrutiny of foreign companies follows Edward Snowden’s revelations last year. Kristin Huguet, a spokeswoman for Apple, declined to comment.

The Ministry of Finance and NDRC didn’t immediately respond to faxes seeking comments about the procurement list, which doesn’t include smartphones. The register applies to all central Communist Party departments, government ministries and all local governments, according to the officials.

The next review for the list will be in January, the people said. Products from Dell, Hewlett- Packard and Chinese company Lenovo Group were included on both lists, the officials said. The exclusions may add pressure to US-China relations, which are strained by Chinese territorial disputes with US allies.