The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Shanghai

China's national pension fund had assets of 516.2 billion yuan (72 billion dollars) at the end of 2007, a rise of 42 percent from a year earlier, state media reported on Friday. Xinhua news agency, which gave the figure, was quoting Dai Xianglong, the head of China's National Social Security Fund.

The fund achieved returns of 110 billion yuan in 2007, partially thanks to a bull run in the stock market, the state- owned Central China Television reported on its website. The fund is studying plans for its fixed-income and equity investment strategy in coming years, including detailed rules on how much of the fund should be invested in stocks, according to the CCTV report.

The report did not say how big a share of the fund's portfolio was currently accounted for by stocks.