Securities regulator pledges measures to stabilize market, boost confidence

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) pledged to take more powerful and effective measures to stabilize the market and boost confidence during its 2024 work meeting held on Thursday and Friday.

The conference conveyed a proactive approach to addressing the concerns of investors, with a commitment to maintaining market stability and intensifying the crackdown on unlawful practices, analysts said.

Efforts will be made to enhance the internal stability of the capital market and establish effective mechanisms to maintain its smooth operation, the CSRC said.

Among the key takeaways from the conference were an emphasis on an investor-centric approach, coordination between stability and progress, and integrated promotion of strong regulation, risk prevention, and development.

The CSRC said it will improve regulatory rules such as issuance pricing, quantitative trading, and margin trading to protect the rights of investors, especially smaller and individual investors.

Additionally, it will promote the assessment system for state-owned enterprises based on their market value and reinforce the regular delisting mechanism, promoting survival of the fittest.

The CSRC said it will increase efforts to combat fraud, stock manipulation and insider trading in the capital market. It will also intensify investigations into wrongdoing and impose more severe penalties on lawbreakers.

Efforts will be made to push for the sound implementation of a registration-based system for stock issuance, strengthen effective supervision throughout the entire process of issuance and listing and improve relevant mechanisms and arrangements, it said.

The CSRC also pledged to promote the integration of strong regulation, risk prevention and development, while coordinating risk control and providing appropriate financing support.

The Shanghai Composite Index closed on Friday at 2910.22 points, up 0.14 percent, achieving a four-day winning streak. The Shenzhen Component Index closed at 8762.33 points, down 1.06 percent. The tech heavy ChiNext Index closed at 1682.48 points, down 2.23 percent.