SHANGHAI stocks posted the biggest gain in nearly three weeks yesterday after China's securities regulator said it has quickened approval for Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors and is looking at raising the investment ceiling for them.
The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.1 percent, the biggest gain since November 1, to 2,030.32 points.
The approval for QFIIs has been speeded up and 64 foreign investors have been approved as QFIIs so far this year, bringing the total number to 199, according to the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
China is also studying plans to raise the current investment cap of US$1 billion for QFIIs as capital inflows under the program continue to accelerate, the China Securities Journal reported, citing an unidentified official with the CSRC.
Wang Chao, an analyst at China International Capital Corp, said: "New QFIIs this year are expected to bring in 50 billion yuan (US$8.1 billion) to the domestic stock market, helping improve liquidity."
CITIC Securities, China's biggest listed brokerage, climbed 2.9 percent to 10.74 yuan, and Sinolink Securities Co surged 4 percent to 15.77 yuan.
China Life Insurance, the country's biggest insurer, added 1.3 percent to 17.30 yuan, and Ping An Insurance Co, the second-largest, rose 3.1 percent to 36.44 yuan after the CSRC said it may allow insurers to carry out fund distribution business.
Landmark building should respect the public's feeling