Chinese Mutual Fund Managers Brace For More Growth

Mutual fund managers in China need to improve the way they manage funds and do more to educate investors on their products, according to Shanghai Daily.

After a new report by China Galaxy Securities showed that Chinese net assets in mutual funds quadrupled last year, experts say managers are in dire need to prepare themselves for another year of expansion.

“The industry expanded by leaps and bounds last year,” said Sang Yu, general manager of marketing development department with the Great Wall Fund Management Co. “The outlook for this year remains good, as the domestic stock market may continue to boom based on people's positive sentiment.”

Sang said the securities regulator is expected to introduce stock index futures, which will allow investors to sell short, as well as a “through train” program that will enable investors to buy into Hong Kong equities through a Bank of China Ltd. account.

By the end of 2007, there were more than 100 million accounts under 363 mutual fund accounts, meaning that one in four households opened an account, Sang said.

Despite this growth, many investors don’t really understand the differences between the products and need to be informed about the risks instead of simply being encouraged to invest, Sang said.