In a speech delivered at a recent municipal meeting on foreign economic work, deputy mayor Jiang Yiren vowed to redouble efforts to attract more domestic and overseas financial organizations in order to improve the functioning of various financial markets.

"We will fully support the reform of financial organizations and will also work harder to improve the quality of financial information as well as regional financial cooperation," said the deputy mayor.

Jiang also pledged that Shanghai will take the lead in the country in establishing a social credit network consistent with international practices and China's situation.

Shanghai boasts a financial market network supported by a securities market, an inter-bank trading market, a bond market, a futures market and a gold market.

Great progress has been achieved with respect to the opening of the city's financial sector. As of 2002, Shanghai was home to 77 operating overseas-financed financial institutions.

As of 2002, a total of 30 foreign banks had been approved to carry out Chinese currency transactions, and 23 others had been approved to deal in both Chinese and foreign currencies.

Four foreign banks have moved their Chinese operational headquarters to Shanghai, where two Sino-foreign capital management joint ventures and one Sino-foreign securities joint venture will soon be set up.

Foreign banks in Shanghai increased their operating capital by 528 million US dollars over the past year, and 36 domestic and overseas insurance companies made 24 billion yuan (US$2.89 billion) in premium revenue last year, up 30 percent from 2001.

(Xinhua News Agency January 20, 2003)