China has no timetable for new IPOs 
 
    BEIJING, Dec. 13 -- China has no time frame for resuming initial public offerings on its primary bourses, state media said on Tuesday, citing the country's top securities regulator.

    "There is no timetable," Shang Fulin, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, was quoted as saying by major financial newspapers, when asked when IPOs would be resumed.

    China has not seen a new IPO since May 24 when Sanhua Group Co. Ltd. , an air-conditioner component maker, sold its shares on the Shenzhen stock exchange.

    The halt coincided with the launch of Beijing's second attempt to sell down some $250 billion in non-traded government shares in listed firms, to enhance transparency and boost corporate profitability.

    A total of 339 listed firms have joined the state share reform programme as of Dec. 12, accounting for one-third of the market capitalization, Shang was quoted as saying.

    Many expect the unofficial freeze to continue through the end of 2005, as regulators focus on getting rid of the stock overhang.

    The state-owned shares are the legacy of a centrally planned economy, comprising two-thirds of the market capitalisation, and have weighed on bourses for years. Beijing first tried to unload them in 2001, but aborted the plan after markets dived 30 percent in three months.

    China's key stock index has fallen over 12 percent so far this year, bogged down in part by the massive share sale.

    (Source: CRIENGLISH.com)
 
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