In 1990 and 1991, China set up securities exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen. In the past decade, the Chinese stock market has grown to complete a journey that took many countries a hundred years or more to cover. The Chinese stock market has promoted the reform of state-owned enterprises and the change of their systems, and enabled a stable transition between the two systems. As for ordinary citizens, the stock market has joined bank deposit accounts to become one of the most important channels for investment.
Methods of trading in stocks are constantly being improved. Today, a network system for securities exchange and account settlement has been formed, with the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges as the powerhouse, radiating to all parts of the country. According to 2005 statistics, there were 1,381 listed companies, with a total market value of 3,243 billion yuan and 73.36 million investors. China issued 20 kinds of A share, and 2 rights issues, collecting a total of 33.8 billion yuan; and 24 kinds of H share, collecting a total of 154.5 billion yuan.
