China's Ministry of Commerce will release new rules in the next month which could effectively spell the end of red-chip listings of Chinese companies in Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post reported. Sources told the newspaper the regulations will formally allow foreign companies to buy Chinese businesses using stock as well as cash, but the ministry will gain the right to sign off on any red-chip transaction, along with the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (Safe), which already had veto power, potentially making red-chip listings less attractive. A ministry source said the rules are intended to make the process more transparent and deter capital flight and the stripping of state assets, not to end red chip listings. Red chips are former state-owned enterprises incorporated and listed outside China, such as CNOOC, China's top offshore oil and gas producer, and government-owned conglomerate Citic.