China's two stock exchanges set the upper-time limit for listed firms' trading suspension to better protect investors' interests.

为了更好的保护投资者的利益，近日，上海证券交易所和深圳证券交易所针对上市公司停牌时间设限。

Listed firms on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses seeking to suspend trading over important asset reorganization should finish the process within a time frame of no longer than three months, according to statements released by the two institutions.

根据这两家国内的证券交易所发布的声明，上海和深圳交易所的上市公司因重大资产重组而寻求停牌的，其完成这一程序的时间不得超过3个月。

In addition, similar time limits were also rolled out for continuous plans for asset reorganization, non-public offerings and major asset purchase.

此外，两家交易所还针对连续的资产重组方案、非公开发行、重大资产购买等事项制定了类似的时间限制。

The new rules are meant to "curb stock suspensions at will and to regulate suspensions", the Shanghai Stock Exchange said.

上海交易所表示，新规是为了遏制随意对股票进行停牌，并对停牌操作进行管理。

Over 1,400 companies suspended their Shanghai- and Shenzhen-listed shares to prevent stock prices from plunging further after the mainland stock market underwent a major correction in June last year.

内地股市在去年六月进行了一次大的修正之后，超过1400家公司暂停其上海和深圳上市股票，以防止股票价格进一步下跌。

"The arbitrary share suspension is a shared concern of regulators and investors both in China and abroad." said Gao Ting, head of China strategy at UBS Securities.

瑞银证券中国战略主管高挺表示：“无论是在国内还是国外，随意对股票进行停牌都是监管层和投资者共同关注的问题。”

Around 300 companies were suspended from trading in April this year, half of which cited restructuring as reason while another 40 percent only vaguely described their reason for suspension as "important events," according to Goldman Sachs.

根据高盛集团的信息表示，大约有300家公司在今年四月停牌，其中一半以重组为原因，而另外40%只是模糊地描述其原因为“重要事件”。