State firm's delisting raises fairness question

Half of recent delistings in China were voluntary, and part of strategic restructuring or privatization, while the other half were compulsory due to financial reports.

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The Nanjing Tanker's delisting still infuriated some in the market, not because it was treated unfairly, but because some other companies involved in financial fraud have avoided delisting. For example, shares of the Nanjing Textile Import & Export Co Ltd are still traded, even though the company falsely reported increases in profits totaling 340 million yuan for five straight years.

Another two companies, Green Land Biological Technology Co Ltd and Wanfu Biotechnology Agricultural Development Co Ltd have stayed on the market despite having been found to have cheated in their financial statements over the last two years.

"If fraudulent companies are not delisted but those firms with losses must be removed from the market, the delisting system is defective and totally upside down," Pi said.

Deng Ge, a CSRC spokesman, said the delisting requirement does not fit Nanjing Textile Import & Export, as the company made profits for two consecutive years after it was found to have faked profits in the previous five years.

"For the sake of protecting medium and small investors, we won't force the company to be delisted for the time being," Deng said.