An investor smiles before an electronic board showing stock information at a securities firm in Xiamen, East China's Fujian Province March 20, 2007. [newsphoto]

China published three rules concerning futures Thursday, marking another step forward toward the launch of long-anticipated stock index futures.

However, the actual timing of the introduction of the new financial products remained a mystery, with speculations ranging from May to October.

The three rules - governing futures exchanges and futures companies and issues concerning accounting firms' involvement in securities and futures businesses - take effect on April 15.

Special coverage: Stock Market Related readings: Stock index futures unlikely before July - report More investors join 'wild' bull run China stocks hit fresh high Blue chips push stocks to new high China stocks at new high after seesaw session China stocks hit new high on investment fever China stocks hit record high Funds investment fever runs high in China China faces liquidity, inflation pressure Asian stocks plunge after US sell-off US stocks plummet on lender woes Central banker downplays market swings Don't blame China for falling markets Chinese unfazed as share markets tremble Stocks fall as Ping An debuts Stock plunge: Capitalism 101 for investors Stocks recovered from record plunge Stocks nosedive after record high close

These rules are intended to complement the country's newly revised Regulation on Futures Trading, which extended its coverage from commodities futures trading to financial futures and option contracts trading, paving the way for the launch of stock index futures. The revision, published in March, becomes effective also on April 15.

Expectations about stock index futures are widely considered as a major factor in the repeated hitting of new highs of China's stock market in the last few days. But there are different versions as to when the new products would actually start trading on the Shanghai-based China Financial Futures Exchange.

The regulators would try to launch the stock index futures in the first half of the year, said Fan Fuchun, vice chairman of China Securities Regulatory Commission on March 4.

The Caijing Magazine narrowed the timeline to May, which is in line with overall market expectations. "The most possible time is early or mid-May," a source close to the decision-makers was cited as saying by the magazine on March 19.

However, reports challenging that kept surfacing lately, citing technical, policy and political factors.

The stock index futures is unlikely to be launched in the first half of the year due to technical and policy reasons, the Beijing News reported last Friday, citing sources with a major futures company.

The testing version of the trading system, released nearly half a year ago, does not allow for an automatic forced liquidation, which is important for the futures companies, the newspaper said, adding that this problem could only be solved by the end of June.

The policy reasons referred to the fact that complementary rules to the Regulation on the Trading of Futures have not been published, not leaving enough time for the exchange to release its trading and clearing rules, to approve member applications and for the members to get prepared.

Fang Quan, a senior market analyst, believed that the launch may be delayed to the fourth quarter due to political considerations.

"There is a consensus that the stock index futures could not be introduced in the first half of the year. Then it is highly likely that it will be launched in the fourth quarter," said Fang in an online interview on Monday.

Political factors should be taken into consideration when investing in stocks in China, noted Fang, referring to the 17th Congress of the Communist Party of China scheduled to convene in the autumn.

"The governmental departments that decide the launch of the stock index futures are sure to calculate whether it will bring the equity market dramatic volatility which is out of line with the atmosphere of a harmonious society," said he.

"Then why not get better prepared by letting more big caps and quality stocks join the market, making the index futures more difficult to manipulate," said Fang.

Shanghai Financial News also pointed to the technical problems. "Technical immaturity is a key reason for the late coming of the stock index futures," the newspaper said Thursday, citing insiders.

"Technical problems do exist, not in the exchange, but in the systems of the members," a technician of the China Financial Futures Exchange was quoted as saying.

The jam of orders is common occurrence in the simulative trading, said an employee of a futures company. But not all companies have encountered such a problem.

The China Financial Futures Exchange has demanded the futures companies to get technically prepared before the end of this month.

It will not wait for every member to get prepared before launching the new product. Instead it will follow the principle of "letting the members that get ready first trade first".

The preparations for the launch of the stock index futures are going smoothly, with the legal framework being improved, the Shanghai Securities Times Monday quoted Jiang Yang, assistant chairman of China Securities Regulatory Commission, as saying.

China Securities Regulatory Commission is the Chinese equivalent of Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) in the US.

The China Financial Future Exchange has basically completed the product design, rules setting and technical preparations for the stock index futures, added Jiang.

Market watchers believe the introduction of such a derivative will provide financial institutions with a much-needed tool to hedge risks but may also spur speculation and widen volatility.

The target index for China's first stock index futures is Shanghai and Shenzhen 300 Index which have gained 55.63 percent this year.