ETFs supporting development strategy, technology innovation

Exchange-traded funds, which were first introduced into the Chinese market 15 years ago, have grown into indispensable tools in the A-share market, serving the country's real economy development and transformation while connecting to the global capital market, said experts.

Liu Ti, deputy general manager of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, said at the 15th anniversary of the Chinese ETF market held on Friday that the increasingly enriched product portfolio of ETFs in the Chinese market has facilitated the country's economic transformation. ETFs targeting the Belt and Road Initiative, 5G and semiconductors have been introduced over the past few years to support the country's development strategy and technology innovation, he said.

As SSE calculated, there were more than 240 ETFs traded in the market by November, with the total market value exceeding 650 billion yuan ($92.5 billion). A total of 177 ETFs are traded at the Shanghai bourse. Since the beginning of 2017, the number of investors taking part in ETF trading has also surged more than five times to 2.6 million this year.