HONG KONG, Aug 26 — Beijing and Washington took a major step today towards ending a dispute that threatened to boot Chinese companies, including Alibaba, from US stock exchanges, signing a pact to allow US regulators vet accounting firms in China and Hong Kong.
Still, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board , which oversees audits of US-listed companies, said it was the most detailed and prescriptive agreement the regulator has ever reached with China. Read full story The US regulator added its inspectors would be able to"view complete audit work papers with all information included and for the PCAOB to retain information as needed."
"It is in line with the hope and expectation of the markets ... if cooperation afterwards satisfies each side's regulatory needs, there is hope that the audit issue will be resolved, and passive delisting will be avoided."