China will further enhance capital account opening, FX official says

China will further enhance capital account opening, FX official says

China will make it easier to move capital in and out of the country and promote financial market deregulation, a senior forex regulator said on Friday, as Beijing seeks to woo foreign investors amid heightened geopolitical tensions.

"We will steadily push forward two-way capital market opening, and strengthen the connectivity between domestic and overseas financial markets," Xu Zhibin, deputy head of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), said at the annual Boao forum for Asia.

"We will expand the variety and scope of investments to attract more investors to invest in China's financial markets."

Xu also vowed to support high-quality Chinese companies to sell shares and bonds in overseas markets, and encourage sovereign wealth funds and other institutional investors to invest offshore "in an orderly manner."

Many global investors have left, or diversified away from China over the past few years, amid concerns over China's economic health, policy orientations, and Sino-U.S. tensions.

Meanwhile, overseas listings by Chinese companies have slumped, thanks to tighter scrutiny over national and data security by both Chinese and Western governments.