37 Chinese firms and universities added to US ‘unverified list’ telling suppliers to handle them with care

The US has put dozens of Chinese companies and universities on a Commerce Department “unverified list” demanding extra caution from US suppliers in dealing with these organisations. A 32-page report published on Thursday added a total of 50 bodies to the list making it harder for US companies to do business with them. The department said it was unable to verify that the organisations in question were abiding by US Export Administration Regulations. Those affected included 37 mainland Chinese companies and universities, many of which work in fields such as precision optics, electronics, machine tools or aviation. A spokesman for China’s Commerce Ministry, Gao Feng, said on Thursday that the move would have a negative impact on Chinese enterprises and accused the US of abusing its export restrictions.