The yuan-denominted A-share market on the Chinese mainland will become the world's third largest stock market - only after the United States and Japan - in 10 years, said Hu Zuliu, general manager of Goldman Sachs Group (Asia) Ltd.

 

Market value of Chinese stocks will reach five trillion US dollars in 2016 and 10 trillion US dollars in 2020, equivalent to 70 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), Hu told the ongoing China Capital Market Forum in Beijing.

 

Compared with the most important stock markets in the world, the A-share market is still small though it gained in size in 2006, said Hu.

 

China's bullish stock market saw total market value hit a record high of 10.25 trillion yuan (US$1.31 trillion) on Jan. 9, which was equivalent to 50 percent of the country's GDP.

 

But the ratio of stock market value to GDP stands at 160 percent in the United States and 124 percent in India.

 

Hu said China's capital market is hampered from expanding mainly because the banking sector predominates in the financial system and enterprises have long relied on bank loans in financing.

 

Chinese enterprises suffer from "complicated, overelaborate and time consuming" formalities before being allowed to go public, which have made direct financing impossible for many of them.

 

Hu suggested China simplify these formalities to help meet enterprises' demand for funds and expand the capital market to encourage more enterprises to go public.

 

(Xinhua News Agency January 15, 2007)