Massive share selling of major shareholders of listed companies will be unlikely although a temporary restriction on their stock selling will expire soon, China's securities regulator said Tuesday.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) suspended major shareholders of listed companies from selling stocks for six months on July 8, 2015, to stabilize stock markets.
The restriction is valid through January 8.
The CSRC promised to roll out soon new measures to better standardize stock selling of major shareholders to restrict massive selling and encourage holdings reduction through other means, such as block trading and equity agreement transfer.
The move aims to phase out transient market-supporting measures orderly and avoid sudden impact on the stock markets due to major holders' share selling, the CSRC said.
In recent years, direct share selling of major shareholders on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges only accounted for about 0.7 percent in the total amount of their holdings reduction, while other means including block trading and equity agreement transfer contributed 60 percent, the CSRC said.
At the beginning of stock trading in 2016, the markets saw a 7-percent plunge in the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, prompting the stock markets in Shanghai and Shenzhen to halt trading for the remainder of Monday.
