中国日报网

CSRC chairman outlines strengthening oversight of algorithmic trading

China's securities regulator will continuously enhance regulatory mechanisms for algorithmic trading and effectively prevent the abuse of technological advantages as part of broader efforts to promote the high-quality development of the fund industry, China Securities Regulatory Commission Chairman Wu Qing said on Saturday.

Speaking at the fourth members' congress of the Asset Management Association of China, Wu said the CSRC will conduct in-depth research and consistently strengthen regulatory mechanisms for program trading, with a greater focus on fairness and compliance.

Targeted supervision will be strengthened to crack down on market manipulation and other violation activities that disrupt market order, Wu said.

He noted that algorithmic trading has become an important trading method in major global markets, including China. Given that individual investors account for the majority of market participants in China, regulators have introduced a series of rules and strictly regulated abnormal trading activities.

Wu added that China's fund industry is at a critical stage of shifting from quantitative expansion to high-quality development, adding that the country aims to make breakthrough progress in building world-class investment institutions during the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period.

Efforts will be taken to further enhance the institutional framework for the fund sector to accelerate the transition from prioritizing asset scale to prioritizing investor returns, Wu said.

"The industry shall not return to the old path of chasing scale and making quick money," he said.

According to Wu, the regulator is formulating a three-year action plan to implement a recent State Council guideline on strengthening regulation, preventing risks and promoting the high-quality development of private investment funds, while improving a regulatory framework covering market entry, ongoing supervision, risk resolution and industry development.

Over the past five years, the Chinese fund industry's stock investments rose 41 percent to 13.4 trillion yuan ($1.98 trillion), while private equity and venture capital funds have injected 5.25 trillion yuan in innovation capital into unlisted enterprises. Mutual funds now manage more than 39 trillion yuan in assets and have distributed 2.5 trillion yuan in dividends over the period, official data showed.

Despite the progress, Wu said the sector still faces structural challenges, including a relatively low share of equity funds and the need to further strengthen international competitiveness and resilience against external risks.

CSRC chairman outlines strengthening oversight of algorithmic trading

Targeted supervision will be strengthened to crack down on market manipulation and other violation activities that disrupt market order, Wu said.

Efforts will be taken to further enhance the institutional framework for the fund sector to accelerate the transition from prioritizing asset scale to prioritizing investor returns, Wu said.

"The industry shall not return to the old path of chasing scale and making quick money," he said.

China proposes broader use of housing provident fund for property fees, renovations

BEIJING -- China's Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development on Friday released a revised draft regulation on the management of the housing provident fund, in a bid to better meet homebuyers' diverse housing needs.

The draft revision, issued to solicit public opinion, seeks to expand the fund's usage from home purchases and rentals to cover property management fees and housing renovations.

Self-employed individuals, part-time workers and other people in flexible employment may voluntarily participate in the housing provident fund system, according to the draft.

The draft calls for digital capability building, inter-regional, inter-departmental and inter-level collaboration, among others.

China proposes broader use of housing provident fund for property fees, renovations

The draft revision, issued to solicit public opinion, seeks to expand the fund's usage from home purchases and rentals to cover property management fees and housing renovations.

Self-employed individuals, part-time workers and other people in flexible employment may voluntarily participate in the housing provident fund system, according to the draft.

The draft calls for digital capability building, inter-regional, inter-departmental and inter-level collaboration, among others.

Standard Chartered: Global renminbi usage rises in April, more than doubling in a decade

A worker counts Chinese currency renminbi at a bank in Linyi, East China's Shandong province. [Photo/Xinhua]

The global use of the renminbi continued to expand between February and April compared with the preceding three-month period, according to Standard Chartered's revised Renminbi Globalization Index, which rose from 212.1 in January to 224.8 in April.

The increase underscores the currency's growing international role, with overall usage now more than twice the level seen about 10 years ago.

The London-based international banking group announced on Friday that it has revised the methodology of its proprietary Renminbi Globalization Index, which tracks the global use of the renminbi, to better reflect the currency's international usage as well as the relative importance and representativeness of the index's underlying components.

The recent rebound in the index reflects, on the one hand, stronger global demand for renminbi settlement amid conflict in the Middle East. On the other hand, it has been supported by policy measures introduced by the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong to advance renminbi internationalization, Standard Chartered said. Notably, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has doubled the total size of the RMB Business Facility to 200 billion yuan ($29.5 billion), effective Feb 2.

The facility ensures sufficient liquidity to support the expansion of offshore RMB business and provides funding for trade finance, capital expenditure and working capital loans. In addition, growing issuance volumes of dim sum bonds and a broader range of issuers have helped support the development of the offshore renminbi bond market.

During the Feb-April period, the index rose by 12.7 points. The cross-border renminbi payments component contributed 3.8 points to the increase, while the offshore renminbi foreign exchange trading component contributed 4.5 points. The dim sum bonds component added 3.1 points to overall index growth. Continued issuance of offshore renminbi government bonds and central bank bills has enhanced the size and liquidity of the offshore renminbi bond market. Meanwhile, the offshore renminbi deposits component contributed about 1 point to the index's overall increase during the period.

Jean Lu, CEO and executive vice-chairperson of Standard Chartered Bank (China) Ltd, said, "The internationalization of the renminbi is entering a new phase, transitioning from a currency for trade settlement to one that also serves financial functions such as hedging, investment and financing. Its international standing will also be significantly enhanced, offering a more diverse, stable and viable option for the international monetary system."

This shift stems fundamentally from the increasingly tangible needs of businesses and individuals in cross-border trade, investment, financing and asset allocation, Lu said.

A recent survey by Standard Chartered of 300 companies worldwide found that 23 percent of respondents' revenue and 25 percent of their costs were already exposed to the renminbi, yet only 14 percent of their debt is denominated in the Chinese currency.

"This indicates that there is still significant room for growth in the use of the renminbi in financing and treasury management," Lu said.

China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) calls for accelerating the efforts in building itself into a financial powerhouse. Standard Chartered expects both the central government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to introduce additional measures to support renminbi internationalization in the years ahead.

Strengthening Hong Kong's position as an international financial center will help expand the currency's global role. For example, if Hong Kong further develops into an international gold trading hub, the renminbi's international standing could be enhanced. As Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland deepen market connectivity and build an integrated gold market ecosystem, the renminbi is also expected to play a greater role in gold pricing and trading, Standard Chartered said.

Standard Chartered: Global renminbi usage rises in April, more than doubling in a decade

A worker counts Chinese currency renminbi at a bank in Linyi, East China's Shandong province. [Photo/Xinhua]

The increase underscores the currency's growing international role, with overall usage now more than twice the level seen about 10 years ago.

This shift stems fundamentally from the increasingly tangible needs of businesses and individuals in cross-border trade, investment, financing and asset allocation, Lu said.

"This indicates that there is still significant room for growth in the use of the renminbi in financing and treasury management," Lu said.

China's securities regulator pledges to refine program trading, boost top-tier institutions

BEIJING -- China will further refine regulatory mechanisms for program trading and step up efforts to build first-class investment institutions, said Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), on Saturday.

With a greater emphasis on fairness and standardization, efforts will be made to effectively prevent the abuse of technological advantages and resolutely crack down on illegal activities such as market manipulation and the disruption of market order, Wu said at a meeting of the Asset Management Association of China.

To foster first-class investment institutions, Wu stressed the importance of prioritizing compliance, investor interests, functional roles, and innovation.

He noted that the CSRC is formulating a three-year action plan to implement relevant guidelines and is working to establish an institutional framework covering market access, ongoing supervision, risk mitigation, and service development.

Emphasizing investor interests, Wu urged both public and private funds to strictly uphold their fiduciary duties and accelerate the shift from a focus on scale to a focus on returns.

Highlighting the role of private equity and venture capital funds in cultivating new quality productive forces, Wu called on these institutions to uphold long-term professionalism and strengthen their investment research capabilities.

He also encouraged industry institutions to continuously deepen innovation across products, services, business models, and organizational structures to better meet market demand.

China's securities regulator pledges to refine program trading, boost top-tier institutions

To foster first-class investment institutions, Wu stressed the importance of prioritizing compliance, investor interests, functional roles, and innovation.

Emphasizing investor interests, Wu urged both public and private funds to strictly uphold their fiduciary duties and accelerate the shift from a focus on scale to a focus on returns.

He also encouraged industry institutions to continuously deepen innovation across products, services, business models, and organizational structures to better meet market demand.

Petrochemical plant revitalizes barren land in Xinjiang's Dushanzi

A view of the Dushanzi petrochemical plant, a subsidiary of the central State-owned company China National Petroleum Corp, located in the Dushanzi district of Karamay, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. [Photo by Mao Weihua/chinadaily.com.cn]

The Dushanzi petrochemical plant, a subsidiary of the central State-owned company China National Petroleum Corp, held a news conference on Friday introducing its green and low-carbon progress in the Dushanzi district of Karamay, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. The day marked the annual World Environment Day.

Located in the Gobi Desert, Dushanzi is an industrial- and mining-oriented urban area with arid conditions, scarce rainfall, severe soil salinization and fragile ecology. The petrochemical industry has revitalized this once barren land.

Since 2015, the plant has been adding greenery, cutting pollution and carbon emissions, reducing energy consumption while improving efficiency.

The company said from 2016 to 2020, it invested 2.3 billion yuan ($340 million) in building and upgrading environmental protection facilities. Between 2021 and 2025, it added another 720 million yuan to carry out 45 environmental protection projects covering air, water and soil. In March, the company was named a "National Green Factory" for 2025 by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

To eliminate odors and improve air quality, the company has upgraded technology to cut gas pollutant emissions and deployed intelligent equipment such as laser radar and gas cloud imaging to build a plant-wide monitoring system for volatile organic compounds. This system enables around-the-clock, real-time detection, precise source tracing and dynamic control of waste gas emissions.

A closed-loop wastewater treatment and reuse system has significantly increased water recycling and saved scarce water resources. A koi pond was built to visually demonstrate the treatment results.

Moreover, the company enhanced its closed-loop mechanism for reducing, reusing and rendering solid waste harmless, while tracking waste throughout its life cycle — from generation and collection to transport and disposal.

Qin Jun, the plant's general manager, said the company will remain rooted in Xinjiang, focus on its core petrochemical business and fulfill its social responsibilities as a central State‑owned enterprise, ensuring regional energy supply, pursuing green and low-carbon development and developing high-end new materials.

He added that the plant will further cut pollution, accelerate green upgrades and improve its ecology, aiming to become a benchmark green petrochemical facility in Northwest China's frontier regions in the new era.

Gold eclipses Treasuries in global reserves

Amid intensifying geopolitical tensions, and escalating technology and trade restrictions, a growing number of central banks are turning to diversified reserve assets such as gold, moving away from an overwhelming reliance on dollar-denominated instruments, market analysts said.

The trend is visible in a report released by the European Central Bank earlier this week, which said that gold has overtaken US Treasuries for the top spot in reserve holdings.

According to the report, gold accounted for 27 percent of global central bank reserves at the end of 2025, moving ahead of US Treasuries at 22 percent and the euro at 15 percent.

While this historic shift is partly due to sustained physical buying, the bank highlighted that it was also driven by soaring gold prices. Adjusting for the price effects using 2023 baseline prices, US Treasuries remain the top holding at 26 percent, while gold drops to 16 percent.

Dollar-denominated assets as a whole still make up the biggest chunk of reserves at 42 percent, exceeding gold's share, according to the report.

The current global monetary system remains anchored by sovereign credit, with the dollar still playing a central role given the United States' status as the world's largest economy, said Ming Ming, chief economist at CITIC Securities.

However, in an era marked by rising geopolitical conflicts and technology and trade sanctions, a growing number of central banks are turning to diversified currency reserves, Ming said.

"Going forward, the dollar will still play an important role in the global reserve system, but the importance of diversified reserves, with gold as a key component, will continue to strengthen," he added.

Central banks have been net buyers of gold for years, with annual purchases exceeding 1,000 metric tons from 2022 to 2024. In 2025, they added 863 tons, well above the 2010-2021 average of 473 tons, data from the World Gold Council showed.

In the first quarter of this year, net purchases are estimated at 244 tons, above both the previous quarter and the five-year average, the council said.

"The main purpose of central banks' gold buying is to expand diversified currency reserves and guard against balance-sheet risks caused by fluctuations in any single country's currency," said Ming.

"It's clear that central banks have a long-term orientation in their gold purchases," he added. "Under the impact of de-globalization, major central banks around the world are expected to continue buying gold in the future."

The faster-than-anticipated US debt buildup is accelerating the pace at which major central banks are diversifying away from US Treasury holdings, according to analysts.

Deng Zhijian, senior investment strategist at DBS Bank China, noted that the US' total national debt had surpassed $39 trillion as of the end of May, reaching a level that the White House Office of Management and Budget had not expected until the end of the year.

"The actual debt level arrived seven months earlier than projected. Clearly, the pace of US debt accumulation is accelerating," Deng said. "The faster US debt grows, the more central banks will seek alternatives, not to replace the dollar overnight, but to reduce concentration risk."

The European Central Bank pointed to survey data suggesting that central banks hold gold not just for diversification but as a hedge against geopolitical risk.

Qu Rui, senior deputy director for research and development at Orient Golden Credit Rating International, said that "global central bank gold buying has moved from tactical rebalancing to a long-term strategy." The turning point, she noted, came after the West froze Russian central bank assets in 2022, which "completely exposed the geopolitical risks of sovereign credit assets". Since then, reserve management logic among central banks has pivoted from the traditional priorities of returns and liquidity to safety and de-geopoliticization, she added.