Five leading chief economists advise on the Year of the Horse capital market: Multi-dimensional efforts to strengthen the foundation for steady and positive development of the capital market

At the beginning of the Year of the Horse, how to further consolidate the steady and improving momentum of the capital market has become a focus of market attention. Regarding this topic, the Securities Daily interviewed five senior experts: Ming Ming, Chief Economist of CITIC Securities; Wei Fengchun, Chief Economist of Chuangjin Hexin Fund; Luo Zhiheng, Chief Economist of Yuekai Securities; Chen Li, Chief Economist of Chuan Cai Securities; and Lu Zhe, Chief Economist of Dongwu Securities, to jointly offer suggestions and strategies for high-quality development of the capital market in the Year of the Horse.

The interviewed experts generally believe that, in the face of complex domestic and international economic and financial environments, further consolidating the steady and improving trend of the market requires multi-dimensional efforts and comprehensive policies. This includes using “stability” to resolve internal and external risks, and “reform” to stimulate market vitality; continuously attracting “long-term funds” into the market to reduce irrational fluctuations; and enhancing market returns to boost investor confidence. Through systematic measures, the foundation for the market’s long-term healthy development can be solidified, better supporting high-quality economic growth.

Seeking Progress While Maintaining Stability:

Promoting a Healthy Market Cycle

By 2025, the capital market is expected to perform remarkably, with major A-share indices rising, market trading activity significantly increasing, and market resilience and stability continuously strengthening.

2026 marks the beginning of the 14th Five-Year Plan. The CSRC’s 2026 systematic work conference will prioritize “adhering to stability as the main theme and consolidating the steady and improving momentum of the market”; Chairman Wu Qing emphasized at the listing company symposium for the 14th Five-Year Plan that “we must focus closely on risk prevention, strengthened regulation, and high-quality development, fully consolidating the steady and improving trend of the capital market.”

Consolidating the steady and improving momentum of the capital market aims to better leverage its core hub functions and inject stronger momentum into high-quality economic development.

“Lingering development in 2025, China’s capital market will flourish, with increased stability and resilience, and more coordinated investment and financing,” said Luo Zhiheng. He added that in 2026, efforts should continue to strengthen the positive development trend of the capital market, further leveraging its role in promoting technological innovation from the supply side and fostering common prosperity and consumption from the demand side.

Chen Li stated that promoting stable expectations, stable operation, and stable functions of the capital market, and continuously consolidating the steady and improving trend, are key measures to serve high-quality development. It is necessary to adhere to the principle of stability while seeking progress, coordinate development and security, strengthen policy coordination and institutional safeguards, and solidify the foundation for stable market operation.

Lu Zhe believes that consolidating the steady and improving trend of the capital market depends on stabilizing expectations, optimizing the ecosystem, attracting fresh liquidity, controlling risks, and promoting reforms—driving a virtuous cycle of “stability” and “progress.”

Strict Bottom Line:

Balancing Risk Prevention and Stable Expectations

Currently, with complex and volatile domestic and international environments, coordinating development and security, and effectively preventing and resolving various risks, are crucial guarantees for the steady and healthy development of the capital market.

Ming Ming pointed out that the domestic economic recovery still needs reinforcement, external risks remain a concern, and relevant policies should be fully utilized in advance to prevent potential economic and financial risks.

Chen Li emphasized the need to continuously improve risk prevention and control mechanisms, enhance market monitoring, early warning, and counter-cyclical regulation, strictly guard the risk bottom line, and prevent large fluctuations in the market.

Relevant departments should also maintain policy continuity, improve policy precision, and guide market expectations toward stability. Wei Fengchun noted that maintaining policy continuity, transparency, and predictability is necessary to stabilize the pricing logic of major assets and guide the market back to value-driven fundamentals. Lu Zhe added that regulatory guidance should remain consistent, transparent, and predictable; under the influence of overseas market volatility, clear signals should be transmitted to stabilize market confidence.

Strengthening regulation is also a key means of risk prevention. Lu Zhe believes that strict regulation should be maintained to guard the bottom line, with severe crackdowns on illegal activities such as financial fraud and market manipulation, and to resolve risks in key areas. Chen Li stated that strict enforcement of laws and regulations, cracking down on illegal activities, and continuously protecting investors’ legitimate rights and interests are essential. Wei Fengchun suggested leveraging digital regulation, risk monitoring, and pricing efficiency improvements to enhance regulatory precision and market operation efficiency, thereby preventing systemic risks.

Deeper Reforms:

Institutional Foundations to Enhance Attractiveness

Reform is the fundamental driver of high-quality development in the capital market. The Central Economic Work Conference held in December 2025 proposed to deepen comprehensive reforms of investment and financing in the capital market.

Currently, reform of investment and financing in the capital market has entered a deep-water zone. Experts agree that ongoing reform should focus on increasing market inclusiveness and adaptability, attracting more high-quality enterprises to list, promoting value growth and governance improvement of listed companies, and encouraging medium- and long-term funds to enter the market. Only then can coordinated development of investment and financing be achieved, injecting more sustainable and dynamic momentum into the stable and long-term operation of the capital market.

Wei Fengchun said that the core of reform lies in establishing a solid institutional foundation. This includes deepening registration system reform, strengthening governance and information disclosure constraints for listed companies, and improving basic systems such as normalizing long-term capital entry and exit, and investor protection. These measures help hedge external uncertainties through institutional certainty.

Luo Zhiheng believes that further deepening reform should allow more high-quality companies to enter the market, strengthen delisting regulation, crack down on fraudulent issuance and financial falsification, and protect investors’ legitimate rights. This will fundamentally improve the quality of listed companies and boost investor confidence. Increasing dividend payout ratios and ensuring dividends are also vital to enhancing market attractiveness. Promoting the entry of medium- and long-term funds, such as pension and insurance funds, is necessary to increase the source of market liquidity. Additionally, gradually establishing more standardized stock market stabilization funds and improving market stability mechanisms are important.

Chen Li emphasized focusing on improving quality and deepening reforms to continuously enhance the market’s endogenous momentum and investment value. This includes tightening entry standards for listed companies, improving delisting, dividend, and buyback systems, and promoting higher quality of listed companies. Reform of issuance, trading, and mergers and acquisitions should be deepened, and long-term institutional investors like pension and insurance funds should be encouraged to practice long-term and value investing, stabilizing capital and enhancing market resilience. Balancing investment and financing, and strengthening the market’s service to the real economy are also key.

Lu Zhe proposed three directions for reform efforts: first, maintaining a steady pace of supply and demand, reasonably balancing IPOs, refinancing, and share reductions to meet real financing needs and secondary market capacity; second, optimizing the structure of long-term funds by guiding insurance, social security, pensions, and wealth management funds into the market, and promoting long-term investment to smooth short-term fluctuations; third, increasing market vitality through reform by deepening registration system reform, improving foundational systems, and enhancing resilience and attractiveness in high-level opening-up, supporting the long-term steady development of the capital market.

Furthermore, the stable development of the capital market depends on solid macroeconomic support. Ming Ming stated that efforts should be made to strengthen economic growth, with more proactive fiscal and monetary policies, coordinated with a package of growth-stabilizing measures, to stabilize the economy and lay a solid foundation for the smooth operation of the capital market.

(Article source: Securities Daily)