China’s top securities regulator has pledged to widen foreign investors’ access to the mainland’s capital market while further lowering the fundraising threshold for technology firms, after a key indicator slumped nearly 4 per cent from a 10-year high in mid-November.

Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), set out guidance for the equity and bond markets in an article published by the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily on Friday, three weeks after he was reported to have offered his resignation.

The Chinese capital market requires a “deep transformation” to enhance its “inclusiveness and adaptability”, Wu said, calling for a regulatory environment where medium and long-term funds “are willing to come, can stay and can develop well” amid market volatility.

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He also highlighted the role of private equity and venture capital, pledging to smooth the “fundraising, investment, management and exit” cycle to ensure efficient capital flows into strategic sectors.

“The article aims to bolster domestic and international investors’ confidence in China’s capital markets,” said Ding Haifeng, a consultant at Shanghai-based financial ­advisory firm Integrity. “It also reaffirms Wu’s role in leading the regulatory commission despite speculation about his resignation.”

Wu Qing’s article aims to bolster domestic and international investors’ confidence in China’s capital market, according to an analyst. Photo: EPA alt=Wu Qing’s article aims to bolster domestic and international investors’ confidence in China’s capital market, according to an analyst. Photo: EPA>

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index hit a 10-year high in November, closing at 4,029.5, up 20.2 per cent from last year’s close, buoyed by a trade truce between Beijing and Washington and heightened expectations for improved company fundamentals.

To accommodate the characteristics of technology companies – including their heavy cash needs for research and development, high operational uncertainty and long profitability cycle – the CSRC aims to provide more precise support for hi-tech enterprises seeking listings through ongoing reforms of the tech-heavy Star Market and the ChiNext board.

A Reuters report on November 13 said the 60-year-old Wu had sought approval to step down, citing health reasons. He appeared in public just hours after the report, in what analysts suggested could have been an effort by authorities to prevent market destabilisation.

China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.08 per cent to 3,878.99, below the watershed threshold of 4,000, on Friday morning. The Star Market 50 Index, which tracks the 50 biggest stocks on the board – including Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation and artificial intelligence chipmaker Cambricon Technologies, edged up 0.05 per cent. A gauge of the ChiNext board rose 0.47 per cent.

The regulator’s latest announcement comes as the country grapples with a challenging external environment, prompting Beijing to double down on hi-tech industries as a hedge against risks to China’s global supply chain.

Following rounds of US-China negotiations earlier this year, Washington and Beijing reached a trade detente during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s meeting with US President Donald Trump in South Korea in late October, bringing US tariffs on Chinese products back to around the level before Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs on April 2. However, Trump warned he would impose an additional 100 per cent tariff on Chinese goods if further talks faltered.

Meanwhile, the tech war shows no sign of abating. A bipartisan group of US senators this week unveiled a bill to block the Trump administration from loosening rules that restrict Beijing’s access to advanced semiconductors for two-and-a-half years. Separately, the European Union has maintained duties on China-made battery electric vehicles.

Additional reporting by Daniel Ren

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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