Mainland China Stock Markets
There are two major stock exchanges in mainland China, Shanghai and Shenzhen.
There are four basic types of shares: state shares, legal person shares,
individual shares, and foreign capital/person shares.
State shares refer to shares held by government agencies or authorized
institutions on behalf of the state. State shares are not allowed to be traded
on an open market.
Legal person shares or C shares are shares of a joint stock company owned by
another company or institution with a legal person status. The transfer and
trading of legal person shares are also restricted.
Individual shares or A shares may only be owned by Chinese citizens. A shares
can be freely traded and transferred in China's domestic markets.
Foreign capital shares include B shares and oversea-listed shares. H shares
refer to shares floated and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, N shares
are issued as ADRs on U.S. stock exchanges; and L shares are issued on the
London Stock Exchange.
B shares
B shares are publicly traded Chinese stocks in which foreign investors are
permitted to invest in the stock exchanges in China. B shares are denominated
in renminbi and payable in foreign currency. Many of the publicly traded companies
issue both A shares and B shares.