Workshop Discusses Shanghai's Role as Int'l Financial CenterSenior Chinese legislator Jiang Zhenghua has stressed the importance of rule of law and moral self- discipline as Shanghai is building itself into an international financial center.Jiang, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, made the remarks at a workshop on international financial center in Shanghai Thursday. He said a financial legislation system adapted to the market economy has almost taken shape in China after a decade of intensive legislation work. He called for actions to raise the moral level of financial employees, reminding that moral defects on the part of financial workers are highly relevant to past financial crises in the world. Jiang also called Shanghai's attention to its acute shortage of qualified professionals. For example, there are over 10,000 certified financial analysts in the United States, 2,000 in Singapore, but only a dozen in China. Also speaking at the occasion, Shanghai's Vice-Mayor Zhou Yupeng said more and more foreign investors have been drawn to the city by its strategic goal as an international economic, financial, trade and shipping center. The Lujiazui financial and trade zone in the Pudong New District alone is housing 69 foreign financial institutions and 24 of them have been approved to offer Renminbi services, he said. Anthony Neoh, chief advisor to the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said it is essential for Shanghai to expand its capital market fast if it is to attain its goal. Though China is already the world's largest emerging capital market, with the combined capitalization of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges ranking the world's sixth largest, the country's capital market is still at its early stage and has unpredictable potential, he said. |
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