and by extension other nations which had treaties with China, to establish factories in Shanghai and other treaty ports. Rubber plantations became the staple of stock trading beginning in the second decade of the 20th century. By the 1930s, Shanghai had emerged as the financial center of the Far East, where both Chinese and foreign investors could trade stocks, debentures, government bonds, and futures. The operation of Shanghai Stock Exchange came to an abrupt halt after Japanese troops occupied the Shanghai International Settlement on December 8, 1941. In 1946, the Shanghai Stock Exchange resumed its operations before closing again 3 years later in 1949, after the Communist revolution took place. After the Cultural Revolution ended and Deng Xiaoping rose to power, China was re-opened to the outside world in 1978. During the 1980s, China’s securities market evolved in tandem with the country's economic reform and opening up and the development of socialist market economy. On 26 November 1990, the Shanghai Stock Exchange was re-established and operations began a few weeks later on 19 December. In 2019, the Shanghai Stock Exchange launched the STAR Market, featuring only technology-related companies, as a rival to the NASDAQ. Chronology 1866 – The first share list appeared in June. 1871 – Speculative bubble burst triggered by monetary panic. 1883 – Credit crisis resulted speculation in Chinese companies. 1890 – Bank crisis started from Hong Kong. 1891 – "Shanghai Sharebrokers Association" established. 1895 – Treaty of Shimonoseki opened Chinese market to foreign investors. 1904 – Renamed to "Shanghai Stock Exchange". 1909–1910 – Rubber boom. 1911 – Revolution and the abdication of the Qing dynasty. Founding of the Republic of China. 1914 – Market closed for a few months due to the Great War (World War I). 1919 – Speculation in cotton shares. 1925 – Second rubber boom. 1929 – "Shanghai Securities & Commodities Exchange" and "Shanghai Chinese Merchant Exchange" were merged into the existing Shanghai Stock Exchange. 1931 – Incursion of Japanese forces into northern China. 1930s – The market was dominated by the rubber share price movements. 1941 – The market closed on Friday, 5 December. Japanese troops occupied Shanghai. 1946–1949 – Temporary resumption of the Shanghai Stock Exchange until the communist revolution. Founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. 1978 – Deng Xiaoping emerged as the dominant figure in China's leadership, thus beginning a period of 'opening up' to the rest of