China: green light for over 30 Trump’s trademarks

China has granted preliminary approval for 31 Trump trademarks for businesses ranging from hotels and spas to animal training and weather forecasting, reopening a debate about the potential for conflicts of interest under his presidency.

Democrats in Congress were critical of Trump after The Associated Press reported Wednesday that the potentially valuable trademarks had been granted, raising questions of conflict of interest and political favoritism. One senator said the issue "merits investigation." There were also seven trademark applications that were rejected.

There was no evidence that President Donald Trump received special favors from the Beijing government in granting the trademarks, experts said, and no indication that Trump was about to start business ventures in China in any of these sectors.

Trump's lawyers in China applied for the trademarks in April 2016, at a time when, as a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, he was complaining about the country's trade practices. 

The recent provisional approval of Trump’s trademarks came at a pace that some experts view as unusually quick.
China examines millions of trademark applications every year and they are processed according to schedule, Zhang Mao, the head of China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC), told reporters after a briefing on the sidelines of the country's annual parliament session.

"Our trademark examination process is open and transparent," said Zhang, whose SAIC runs the trademarks office. Asked by reporters whether their approval was at all linked to Trump's status as president, Zhang said: "(They) were processed completely according to trademark law. You can go check."

Spring Chang, a founding partner at Chang Tsi & Partners, a Beijing law firm that has represented the Trump Organization, declined to comment specifically on Trump's trademarks. But she did say government relations are an important part of trademark strategy in China.