Commentary by Chen Chen
BEIJING – The US House of Representatives’ approval of a legislation last week to politicize securities regulation will not only cause economic losses to investors but also damage America’s business environment.
The legislation, titled the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, bars securities of foreign companies from being listed on US exchanges if the issuers fail to comply with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s (PCAOB) audits for three years in a row.
With the capital markets highly globalized today, a fair, just and non-discriminatory environment is vitally important to economic and financial cooperation between economies.
The bill, once signed into law, could have a profound impact on investors. Proposed out of obvious ideological bias against Chinese companies, the law would weaken global investor confidence in the US capital market and harm its international status.
Listed companies with a strong market performance are important resources to stock exchanges.
A new report from the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission showed that as of October 2, there were 217 Chinese companies listed on the three largest US exchanges – NASDAQ, the New York Stock Exchange, and NYSE American – with a total market capitalization of US$2.2 trillion.
The Chinese regulatory authority has long been committed to dual audit supervision with the US side. China assisted the PCAOB with a pilot inspection into a Chinese accounting firm in 2017, and has provided specific proposals to the PCAOB since 2019 on carrying out joint inspections of accounting firms.
China and the United States should work together on an equal footing with a frank and open attitude in order to better protect the legitimate rights and interests of investors as well as to promote cross-border regulatory cooperation in accordance with market principles, the rule of law and best international practices.
The economic and trade relations between China and the United States are of great significance for not only the two leading global economies but the whole world. A strong relationship between the two is what a post-pandemic world desperately needs to get the global economy back on track. Anyone who tries to unwind the world’s most important bilateral relationship should be held accountable.
– Xinhua
