MNI BRIEF: China To Further Open Up Bond Market To Foreigners
China will further open up its banking and insurance sectors and broaden the participation of foreign financial institutions in the domestic bond market, according to an action plan issued by the State Council on Tuesday.
Restrictions will be lifted on foreign access to manufacturing and there will be more access to sectors including telecommunications and health care, according to the plan. Qualified overseas insurance institutions will be able to establish or acquire stakes in domestic insurers, it said.
China will encourage eligible foreign financial institutions to participate in domestic bond underwriting and explore encouraging foreign banks to join in pilot trading of government bond futures. Regulators will expand the scope of a pilot program for qualified overseas limited partnerships, supporting foreign investment in setting up private equity funds in China.
The country will improve rules for cross-border data flow and develop standards for cross-border data transfer in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in order to launch a white list for data flow, it said.(See MNI INTERVIEW: Hainan Bonds To Fund World's Largest Freeport)