Markets

China stock index futures open lower Wednesday

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-18 10:36

BEIJING -- China's stock index futures opened lower Wednesday. The contract for settlement in May, the most actively traded, opened 2.2 points lower at 3,116.2 from the previous close.

The June contract opened at 3,125.8, down 7.4 points from the previous close. And the contract for settlement in September opened 2.2 points lower at 3,171 points.

The contract for settlement in December fell 5.2 points at the opening to 3,213.4.

The stock-index contracts, agreements to buy or sell the Hushen 300 Index at a present value on an agreed date, are designed to allow investors to bet on and profit from both gains and declines in the market.

The index futures were launched at the China Financial Futures Exchange (CFFEX) and started trading from April 16, 2010. The CFFEX has set the base value for all the four contracts at 3,399 points.