BEIJING — China on Tuesday slammed as ‘‘groundless’’ a congressional report that called two Chinese telecom companies a threat to US security.

The report, released Monday by the House Intelligence Committee, warned that the US government and American companies should stop buying equipment from Huawei and ZTE — two of China’s largest telecom firms — because they are loyal to the Chinese government, had been used to steal intellectual property in the past, and could be used in the future as a tool for Chinese spying.