BEIJING -- Due to complicated factors, now is not the best time for the Shanghai Stock Exchange to launch its international board that would allow foreign issuers to sell shares in the Chinese financial hub, the city's mayor said Tuesday.
Factors that affect the timing of the launch are "very, very complicated," Mayor Han Zheng told reporters on the sidelines of the country's annual parliamentary session.
The launch involves so many legal, systematic, technical and social matters that this is not the ideal time for it, said Han.
The launch of international board was stated in a document issued by the State Council, or China's Cabinet, in 2009.
But Han revealed that preparations for the international board have been going smoothly, and the final launch should gain approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
Shanghai has been working to develop itself into a global financial center by 2020.
Han said he does not feel that establishing Shanghai as a global financial center will affect Hong Kong's status and prospects as a global financial center.
Hong Kong has already been a financial center with great progress in offshore RMB business, while Shanghai is still focusing on domestic business, he said.
Considering China has such a vast market, the two cities could both serve as financial centers but with different roles, and they should support each other in future development, said Han.
