Last checked at 
(Adds statement from Hymson)
WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department
said on Monday it had added 33 Chinese entities to its so-called
'unverified list', which requires U.S. exporters to go through
more procedures before shipping goods to the entities.
The department said it was taking the step as it was unable
to verify the legitimacy and reliability of those entities in
relation to their use of U.S. exports. The entities included
listed companies, universities as well as aerospace and
electronics suppliers.
WuXi Biologics saw its stock plummet more than 25%
on Tuesday to wipe HK$77 billion ($9.9 billion) off its market
value following the addition of its units in Wuxi and Shanghai
to the list. Trade in its shares was later halted.
The maker of ingredients for vaccines including
AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine said, however, that while
it had imported manufacturing equipment subject to U.S. export
controls, Washington's move had no impact on its business or
ongoing services to global partners.
WuXi Bio was prevented by U.S. export controls from
reselling or re-exporting items purchased from the United States
but the Commerce Department had been unable to conduct checks
that WuXi Bio was in compliance due to the pandemic, WuXi Bio's
CEO Chris Chen told an investor call on Tuesday.
"Because of COVID-19, they have not been able to travel here
in the last two years to verify us, so they have put us on this
'unverified list'," he said.
"The affected companies are only in Shanghai and Wuxi and
our factories in Shanghai and Wuxi have already been built, so
there is no longer any need to buy large amounts of hardware for
bioreactors."
The company's lawyers plan to negotiate with the U.S.
Commerce Department, he added.
Shares in Hymson, a manufacturer of laser and
automation equipment, slid more than 7% after a unit was added
to the list.
Hymson said in a statement that the addition would not have
any significant or adverse effect on its operations or financial
situation. It added that it would evaluate what impact the
listing could have on the company's future development.
($1 = 7.7947 Hong Kong dollars)
(Reporting by David Brunnstrom and Doina Chiacu; Additional
reporting by Roxanne Liu, Brenda Goh and Jason Xue; Editing by
Mark Porter, Edwina Gibbs and Louise Heavens)
