China's stock market capitalization hits new high by end of February

The total market capitalization of the Chinese domestic stock market hit a record high at the end of February by exceeding 116.8 trillion yuan (about 16.95 trillion U.S. dollars), according to the China Association for Public Companies.

The figure marked an increase of 34 percent year on year, a monthly report published by the association showed on Wednesday.

Sectors related to manufacturing, scientific research and technical services each saw their market capitalization rise by more than 40 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the report.

At the end of February, a total of 5,492 companies were listed on the domestic stock market, with 2,310 listed on the Shanghai stock exchange.

Meanwhile, the number of listed companies on the Shenzhen and Beijing bourses stood at 2,887 and 295, respectively, the report showed.

State-owned holding companies accounted for 27 percent of all listed firms, and privately owned holding firms for 63 percent.

In February alone, the number of companies with market value exceeding 100 billion yuan increased by 12, those with a market value ranging from 10 billion to 100 billion yuan went up by 67, while the number of companies valued below 2 billion yuan further declined.

Eight companies, including seven manufacturing firms, made initial public offerings on the domestic stock market during the month, raising a combined total of nearly 6.08 billion yuan, the report showed. ■