S&P Dow Jones removes Chinese companies from index after US executive order

S&P Dow Jones Indices said on Thursday that it would remove some Chinese companies from indexes used to track market performance following a U.S. government ban on Americans investing in their stocks and bonds.

The Chinese government opposed the move as politically motivated. The companies affected include surveillance technology provider Hikvision, processor chip manufacturing SMIC among others. The announcement follows President Donald Trump’s Nov. 13 order barring Americans from buying stocks or bonds issued by companies deemed to be linked to China’s military.