(单词翻译:单击)
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index opened lower at 4087.41 points, 247.51 points, or 5.78 percent down from Tuesday's close.
The rise in the stamp tax to 0.3 percent from 0.1 percent marked the latest move to cool down the country's runaway2 equity3 market.
A Ministry4 of Financial official said the move is intended to help promote the healthy development of the securities markets.
The fiscal5 measure came after a series of monetary6 tools by the central bank failed to produce marked results in cooling down the market. The Shanghai Composite Index, the most widely watched indicator7 of the mainland's stock market has soared more than 60 percent so far this year on top of a 130 percent rally in 2006.
China's central bank has raised interest rates twice and bank reserve requirement four times this year. However, the stock market ignore the signal and rose on the first trading day after each tightening8.
The booming is partly driven by the flood of new investors9. The number of stock accounts, including A-, B-shares and closed-end funds in the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges reached 100.27 million by Monday, according to statistics from the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation.
The stock market frenzy10 has aroused mounting bubble concerns, from both home and abroad. The latest warning came from former chairman of US Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan who warned last week China's stock market was clearly unsustainable and faced a dramatic contraction11.
Greenspan's remarks followed warnings from Asia's richest man, Li Ka-shing who said China's stock valuations "must be a bubble" and prices are likely to decline. Central Bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan also expressed concerns earlier this month.
Some analysts12 have been advocating the adoption13 of fiscal measures, including the hike of the stamp tax which is collected based on transaction turnover14 and is levied15 on both sellers and buyers.
In the 16-year-plus history of China's stock market, a stamp tax hike usually led to a slump16.
China started to collect a stamp tax on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in July, 1990, but only on sellers at 0.6 percent. Four months later, the buyers were also subject to the tax.
The tax triggered a downturn in the Shenzhen market, forcing authorities to cut it in half to 0.3 percent in October 1991. At the same time, the Shanghai Stock Exchange also began collecting duty on both sides of trades.
On May 10, 1997, the tax rate was upped to 0.5 percent, partly blamed for a bear market that lasted until mid-1999. The rate was lowered to 0.4 percent in June, 1998 before being adjusted to 0.3 percent one year later and to 0.2 percent in 2001.
Regulator further lowered the duty in January 2005 to 0.1 percent in order to boost stock prices during a market slump lasting17 from 2001 to 2005.
收听单词发音
1
plummet
|
|
| vi.(价格、水平等)骤然下跌;n.铅坠;重压物 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
2
runaway
|
|
| n.逃走的人,逃亡,亡命者;adj.逃亡的,逃走的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
3
equity
|
|
| n.公正,公平,(无固定利息的)股票 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
4
ministry
|
|
| n.(政府的)部;牧师 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
5
fiscal
|
|
| adj.财政的,会计的,国库的,国库岁入的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
6
monetary
|
|
| adj.货币的,钱的;通货的;金融的;财政的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
7
indicator
|
|
| n.指标;指示物,指示者;指示器 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
8
tightening
|
|
| 上紧,固定,紧密 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
9
investors
|
|
| n.投资者,出资者( investor的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
10
frenzy
|
|
| n.疯狂,狂热,极度的激动 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
11
contraction
|
|
| n.缩略词,缩写式,害病 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
12
analysts
|
|
| 分析家,化验员( analyst的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
13
adoption
|
|
| n.采用,采纳,通过;收养 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
14
turnover
|
|
| n.人员流动率,人事变动率;营业额,成交量 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
15
levied
|
|
| 征(兵)( levy的过去式和过去分词 ); 索取; 发动(战争); 征税 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
16
slump
|
|
| n.暴跌,意气消沉,(土地)下沉;vi.猛然掉落,坍塌,大幅度下跌 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|
17
lasting
|
|
| adj.永久的,永恒的;vbl.持续,维持 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
|