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Ultrasonic says top executives and cash missing

[September 17, 2014]  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Ultrasonic AG, a Chinese footware maker listed in Germany, said most of its cash reserves in China and Hong Kong have disappeared, adding it has also lost trace of its chief executive and chief operating officer.

"Most of the company's cash funds at PRC (People's Republic of China) and Hong Kong levels have been transferred being no longer in the company's range of influence," Ultrasonic said in a statement on Tuesday.

Shares in Ultrasonic were down 79 percent at 1418 GMT (10.18 a.m. EDT).

The group's finance chief has informed the supervisory board that he has been unable to reach both CEO Qingyong Wu and COO Minghong Wu since the weekend, Ultrasonic added.

The group said its German holding company still has a "relevant six-figure amount" at hand to meet its payment obligations.

Finance chief Kwong Clifford Chan and the supervisory board are in talks with authorities and business partners, trying to gather further information to clarify the situation, according to the statement.

Another Germany-listed Chinese manufacturer, Youbisheng Green Paper, earlier this year also said its CEO had been absent with no explanation. It later initiated insolvency proceedings.

(Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Christoph Steitz)

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