Red chip A-share listings delayed

Plans to allow red-chip companies (Chinese companies that are incorporated and listed overseas) to list on mainland stock exchanges may be delayed, Economic Observer reported (in Chinese). A source at a domestic investment bank told the paper that Hong Kong has lobbied the central government to temporarily halt A-share issues to red chips over concerns that they may threaten the territory's status as an international financial center. The fear is that red-chip listings on mainland stock markets would bring down the trading volume on the Hong Kong bourse, said the source. The China Securities Regulatory Commission had been preparing to allow red chip listings this year in a bid to further support the already high A-share market. The plan will not be implemented until 2008, the newspaper reported.