15 January 2005	Saturday	04 Zilhaj 1425

BEIJING, Jan 14: The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on Friday cleared the way for the resumption of new share issues after a four-and-a-half-month suspension.

Baoshan Iron and Steel Company, China's largest steel maker, will be one of the first two companies to have their proposals reviewed next week, the stock market watchdog said in a brief statement.

Prices of IPOs will mainly be set through a book-building process - whereby institutional investors make bids for the stock on offer instead of the company and regulators setting the price, the CSRC said last year.

From January 1, companies and underwriters wanting to launch IPOs must seek the opinions of at least 20 potential institutional investors before pricing their stock.

"The new system is supposed to give investors more say in the pricing process and better protect investors' interests by presenting more factual financial figures of the listing applicants," an earlier report by Xinhua said.

"The final IPO price will be decided upon the results of this inquiry," it said. The CSRC suspended new share issues in last August to revise pricing rules, aiming to make the pricing of new shares more market-oriented. Guangdong Rieys Group will also come under the review for its 150 million additional stock issue. -AFP