Global Times | Overseas investors hold over 3.5 trillion yuan worth of China A-shares: CSRC
China's capital market has continued to expand its high-level institutional opening-up, with the value of A-shares held by overseas investors rising from over 3 trillion yuan ($420 billion) at the end of 2020 to more than 3.5 trillion yuan at present, according to a report by China Media Group (CMG) on Wednesday citing data from the Shanghai Stock Exchange Global Investors Conference.
Participants at the conference noted that major A-share indexes have risen steadily over the past year, with the MSCI China Index outperforming global markets so far this year. They highlighted that China's steady and well-calibrated efforts to advance two-way opening of its capital market have created a sound and reassuring institutional environment for international investors, according to CMG.
Li Ming, vice chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), said that overseas investors now hold more than 3.5 trillion yuan worth of A-shares, making them an important force in the market. Looking ahead, he said China's capital market will continue to open wider to the world, with plans to include more futures and options products in its opening-up scope and to further facilitate foreign institutional participation in the domestic market.
Participants also said that the overall quality and investment value of China's listed companies have continued to improve. A large number of technology leaders have emerged in fields such as integrated circuits, biomedicine and new energy, forming industrial clusters with increasing technological sophistication and providing high-quality assets that attract global investors, according to CMG.
Qiu Yong, chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, said the bourse will focus on fostering new quality productive forces by refining key mechanisms such as IPOs, refinancing, and mergers and acquisitions. The aim, he noted, is to guide capital toward frontier technologies, advanced manufacturing, and future industries, promote deeper integration between technological and industrial innovation, and enrich its international product offerings to enhance global competitiveness and attractiveness, CMG reported.