China's stock regulators are tightening their early-warning system for listed companies, requiring all firms to make quarterly financial reports.
The move, which will take effect next year for most companies, is part of a plan to improve the quality of information available to investors and strengthen regulatory mechanisms in a market that has been plagued with abuses.
Under present rules, companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges are only required to publish half-year and full-year financial statements.
'Starting in 2002, all listed companies must also publish quarterly results within a month after the end of the first and third quarter,' the Shanghai Securities News reported, quoting the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
The watchdog said all companies in the exchange's special treatment category must publish quarterly statements beginning in the third quarter of this year.
Companies are placed in the category after reporting two consecutive years of losses. Once they receive this classification, their stock price can fluctuate only 5 per cent per day compared with 10 per cent for other shares.
