US mulls banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok, says Mike Pompeo

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said late on Monday that the United States is "certainly looking at" banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok. "I don't want to get out in front of the President (Donald Trump), but it's something we're looking at," Pompeo said in an interview.

India has banned 59 apps with Chinese links for engaging in activities "prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order". The ban came in the wake of the ongoing stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh with Chinese troops.

All the 59 apps have now been removed from Apple Inc. and Google LLC's app stores for the Indian market. A media report in Beijing said Chinese tech giant unicorn ByteDance Ltd. Was anticipating a loss of over $6 billion after three of its apps, including TikTok, were banned by India.

The USD 6 billion amount is most likely more than the combined losses for all the other Chinese apps banned by India, China's Caixinglobal.com had reported.

Also read: TikTok to exit Hong Kong market soon over China's new security law