New Oriental Photo: CFP

Several HKEX listed stocks in education sector including New Oriental, China New Higher Education Group and Scholar Education Group all saw their share price fall at the open of the market on Monday morning, due to Chinese market regulator's restricting measurements toward the country's private education industry.

Share prices of New Oriental, China New Higher Education Group and Scholar Education Group had seen 36 percent, nearly 13 percent and 41 percent drop respectively as of press time. In China's A share market, share of Xueda (Xiamen) Education Technology Group Co had decreased to its daily limit, and Offcn Education Technology Co also saw an 8.82 percent of price decline. 

New Oriental believes that the regulation is estimated to largely affect the company's private tutoring operation but vowed to follow related regulations and take compliance measurements, according to the company's official announcement on Monday. 

Other A share market listed education companies including Xueda Education Group, Shanghai Xinnanyang Only Education & Technology Co and Dongguan Kingsun Optoelectronic Co all vowed to take adjustment to their private tutoring service sector which generates their majority of total revenue. 

China's market regulator recently introduced sweeping measures to country's private tutoring agencies, including barring curriculum-based tutoring institutions from raising money through stock market listings, and banning foreign capital to control or participate in the private education sector through methods such as mergers and acquisitions, entrusted operations, or franchise chains, in order to correct disorderly competition in the industry and ease the burden on Chinese students and their families. 

At close of HKEX on Monday afternoon, share prices of New Oriental and Scholar Education Group were down by 47 percent and over 45 percent, respectively. China New Higher Education Group's share saw a slightly up but still declined by over 11 percent than the previous trading day.

Global Times