China stock index futures open flat Wednesday

China's stock index futures opened flat on Wednesday, with the contract for settlement in May, the most actively traded, up 1 point to open at 2,169.

The June and September contracts were both flat from the previous settlement price to open at 2,159.2 and 2,148 points respectively. The December contract rose 1 point to open at 2,157.

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 either gains or 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.