Trump says TikTok deadline could be extended

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that his 75-day delay in enforcing a ban on the popular short-video app TikTok could be extended, but said he doesn't think that will be necessary.

In remarks to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he still hopes to make a deal on TikTok to keep the app alive in the U.S., crediting it with helping him win the 2024 presidential election.

The app's fate has been up in the air since a law requiring its Chinese owner ByteDance to either sell it on national security grounds or face a ban took effect on January 19.

Trump, after taking office on January 20, signed an executive order seeking to delay by 75 days enforcement of the law.

Asked if the deadline was running out, Trump said, "Well, I have 90 days from about two weeks ago, and I'm sure it can be extended. But let's see. I don't think you'll need to."

It wasn't immediately clear what the 90-day reference meant.

Trump said there were a lot of people interested in acquiring the social media company, and said its image had changed since the 2024 election. He said he found the app to be fair and useful in appealing to young voters.

Trump said he believed Chinese President Xi Jinping would agree to approve the sale of TikTok to a U.S. buyer as it would also be in China's interest.

"I'm going to make it worthwhile for China to do," he said, without giving any details. "I think it would be to China's advantage to have the deal be made."

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Steve Holland; Editing by Chris Reese and Leslie Adler)

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