Global investment firm T. Rowe Price Group today announced that it has opened a research office in Shanghai, following the establishment of a wholly foreign-owned enterprise, T. Rowe Price Investment Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd, in the city's free trade zone.

The focus of the new office will be to expand and deepen T. Rowe Price's research coverage of China's rapidly growing investment universe, and to employ additional analysts on the ground who can cover Chinese companies locally. This will further enhance T. Rowe Price's leading global research platform, which informs investment decisions across the firm's range of local, regional and global investment strategies.

Dai Wang, a Chinese national who joined the firm in 2014, will lead the new Shanghai office. Wang has worked as a research analyst in T. Rowe Price's Equity Division covering Asian stocks in Hong Kong and in the firm's headquarters in Baltimore, U.S.

Justin Thomson, head of International Equity and co-head of Global Equity, who oversaw the office opening, commented, "The opening of our office in Shanghai represents an important milestone for T. Rowe Price, both in terms of bolstering our coverage of and commitment to China, as well as our long-term plan to build a sustainable and diversified business in Asia Pacific. China is home to some of the most exciting investment opportunities in the world."

"With more than 5,000 names in its investment universe, it has emerged as the second largest equity market globally and is one of the broadest and deepest growth markets outside of the U.S."

He added, "The new office will amplify our ability to conduct investment research locally and seize opportunities in the Chinese market for our clients. We look forward to welcoming on board new mainland Chinese colleagues who will play an essential role in unearthing a wide range of carefully selected high-quality companies with strong future outlooks in the Chinese market."

Elsie Chan, head of Asia ex-Japan Distribution, commented, "We have been managing money on behalf of eligible Chinese institutional clients since 2006. The establishment of the investment consulting WFOE shows we are continuing to develop our investment research capabilities on behalf of our clients. We continue to closely monitor developments in the market and seek opportunities to work with clients who share our long-term focus."