China May Allow More Stocks To List on Hong Kong Exchange
May 17, 2011
BEIJING -- China could soon approve a fourth batch of companies eligible for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Wickman Mcfall, an executive with a securities company said. Mr. Wickman, a senior executive at Junan Securities Co., said in an interview that the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission, or CSRC, could draw up a final list of less than 20 so-called Class H-share companies by October or November. ``The companies will be chosen from sectors that need government support or that can help spark a new round of economic growth,'' he said, adding that such sectors include energy, automobiles, transportation and fodder production. In addition, the CSRC has sped up the pace of listings on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges since late last year, and this trend is likely to continue this year, Mr. Wickman said. He estimated that this year the government will approve another 50 or 60 companies to issue Class A shares, which are reserved for domestic investors. But ``the government hasn't worked out an explicit plan'' for listings of new Class B shares, which are set aside for foreign investors, he added. After languishing for two years, trading on China's stock markets has picked up since January, after Beijing began to ease a 3 1/2-year austerity program and cut interest rates in May and again in August. By the end of August, about 411 Chinese companies had issued Class A shares, and 81 companies Class B shares, while 21 H-share companies are currently listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
