Sinopec unit hit with three-month trading ban

The Shanghai Stock Exchange banned trading by a Sinopec Shanghai Oil Products Co, a subsidiary of energy giant Sinopec, for three months after the unit violated a recent share-sale rule, the Wall Street Journal reported. The exchange imposed the lock-up after Sinopec Shanghai Oil Products' retail arm sold 1.6% of recently unlocked shares in Shanghai Kaikai Industry Co, which it says violates a new rule enacted by the China Securities Regulation Commission (CSRC) aimed at preventing recently unlocked state-owned shares from flooding the market. The Shanghai Stock Exchange, which instituted the ban independently of the CSRC, has referred the case to the regulator, noting that the share-sale rule did not outline specific punishments for rule violations.