A federal judge temporarily blocked the US Department of Defense from restricting US investment in Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The Defense Department, under the Trump administration in mid-January, added Xiaomi and eight other firms to a list that requires American investors to divest their holdings in the firms by a deadline.

Xiaomi in late January filed a complaint in a Washington court seeking to be removed from the list.

US District Judge Rudolph Contreras on Friday put a temporary halt to the ban for Xiaomi, the report said.

Contreras said Xiaomi was likely to win a full reversal of the ban as the litigation unfolds, the report added.

Reuters