NYSE head slams overseas listing rules

New York Stock Exchange chief John Thain spoke out against the pending restrictions imposed by the government on Chinese companies listing overseas, saying such measures harm the country's economy. "Companies need access to capital, they need access to global investors … so to restrict them from doing that will hurt their own business, and therefore ultimately hurt the Chinese economy," Thain said in Shanghai, AFP reported. As well as opening a NYSE representative office in Beijing, Thain said he hoped his visit to China would deliver closer ties with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, helping companies to list domestically and in New York. The exchange signed a memorandum of understanding in August with authorities in Jiangsu province under which NYSE is promoted as the stock exchange of choice for local companies looking to list overseas.