September 28, 2006	Thursday	Ramazan 4, 1427

BEIJING, Sept 27: The biggest public pension fund in the United States is considering investing in Chinese firms for the first time in a move that could have a major flow-on effect, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

The California Public Employees Retirement System (CALPERS), which has a portfolio of $208 billion, has not invested in Chinese companies before because of concerns about poor corporate governance standards.

But Calpers’ recently appointed chief investment officer, Russell Read, told the London-based newspaper that the fund was looking to China to capitalise on the country’s booming economy and to raise its exposure to emerging markets.

Read said plan to invest in China and other emerging markets was now becoming a top priority for the Sacramento-based fund.

“Investing properly in the emerging markets ... is fundamental to our investment success,” the Financial Times quoted him as saying.

The newspaper said such a move by Calpers could see other US public pension funds follow suit and increase demand for Chinese shares.—AFP