Greater Freedom to Invest

China’s securities regulator said it has removed asset allocation restrictions on qualified foreign investors to allow them greater freedom to invest. In principle, neither the allocation mix for investors under the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFII) nor the Rmb-denominated Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) programs will be restricted, said Deng Ge, spokesperson for China’s Securities Regulatory Commission. Previously, China required overseas investors to invest at least 50 percent of their assets into stocks, and their cash ratio should not exceed 20 percent. The move is China’s latest effort to open up its capital market. To gradually open its capital account, the government introduced the QFII and RQFII programs in 2003 and 2011 respectively. They give foreign investors the right to move quotas of money into the account to encourage controllable flows. to adjust their fees according to their own conditions and encourage domestic educational institutions to cooperate with foreign counterparts to improve competitiveness in state-of-the-art fields. The government will roll out policies to promote recreational vehicles to boost tourism in rural or suburban areas, expand visa-free ports for inbound cruise tourism and pilot yacht leasing services, while local governments are encouraged to develop facilities for recreational sports. China will further reduce barriers for private investment in consumer and service businesses.