"New shares issues are unlikely to resume anytime soon," Li Qingyuan, head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission's research centre, was quoted as saying by the Securities Times. "The timing is not appropriate," Li said without elaborating.
China quietly suspended new initial public offerings in its domestic markets soon after regulators in April resumed the efforts to offload massive government holdings that have weighed on stock prices.
There have been no initial public offerings on its primary share markets since May 24, when Sanhua Group Co Ltd, a maker of air-conditioner components, floated shares on the Shenzhen stock exchange.
The IPO freeze has frustrated more than 20 companies that have already won approval to launch offerings. Many expect the unofficial freeze to continue until the end of 2005. Beijing first tried to unload the state shares in 2001 but aborted the plan after markets dived 30 percent in three months, with investors fearing the value of their stocks would be undermined once state shares hit the market.
The renewed effort to convert government holdings into freely traded shares this time has also helped drive markets to multi-year lows. The key index, briefly lifted by the yuan revaluation in July, is down nearly 13 percent so far this year.