President Donald Trump plans to extend for a third time the deadline for Chinese company ByteDance Ltd. to divest the American operations of TikTok, allowing the social media app to keep running in the US while negotiations proceed.

TikTok was given a lifeline for a third time by President Trump, allowing it to keep running through mid-September in spite of U.S. legislation requiring its Chinese owners to divest its operation.

"As he has said many times, President Trump does not want TikTok to go dark. This extension will last 90 days, which the Administration will spend working to ensure this deal is closed so that the American people can continue to use TikTok with the assurance that their data is safe and secure," Leavitt said in a statement.