CSRC curbs 'irrational investments'

BEIJING — China's top securities regulator is busy seeking methods to curb irrational speculation, including prompting the de-listing mechanism and improving risk-warning systems for private investors.

The key reason why most private shareholders suffered serious losses over the past two years was because of immature capital market governance and a weak regulatory system, a senior official with China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said in a statement released on the agency website.

"The regulatory agency is making policies to curb speculative investments especially for IPOs (initial public offerings) and inferior stocks that drive up share prices to irrational highs," the statement said.

Many investors blindly chase high prices for newly listed as well as low-quality stocks without knowing important financial information about the companies, leading to a big loss after a sharp drop.

The CSRC plans to establish an independent agency to evaluate the operating systems of public companies and assess risks for investors in order to protect their interests.

In addition, the regulator is expected to launch policies that will force unqualified companies to withdraw from the stock market. However, "investors should be responsible for their own investment results", it said.