China calls report it tried to obtain US Federal Reserve data ‘a political lie’

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian gestures during a news conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing (Liu Zheng/AP)

China’s government has rejected as a “political lie” a report by The Wall Street Journal that Beijing tried to recruit informants in the Federal Reserve system to obtain US economic data.

The report, citing an investigation by a Senate panel, adds to accusations of Chinese computer hacking and other efforts to steal US commercial and government information.