Dive Brief:
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The Washington Post reported the White House is considering applying sanctions against Chinese companies and individuals it believes benefited from hacking U.S. trade secrets.
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Suspicions that Chinese hackers were behind several data breaches in the U.S. have strained relations between the U.S. and China.
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President Xi Jinping is preparing to make his first visit to the U.S. this month.
Dive Insight:
The Post said a final decision on whether to issue the sanctions is expected to come soon.
President Barack Obama signed an executive order earlier this year enabling the use of economic sanctions against cyberhackers.
"That strategy includes diplomatic engagement, trade policy tools, law enforcement mechanisms, and imposing sanctions on individuals or entities that engage in certain significant, malicious cyber-enabled activities," a senior administration official said.
The possible sanctions send "a signal to Beijing that the administration is going to start fighting back on economic espionage," the official said.
