China's National Social Security Fund is bullish about the long-term outlook for the stock market, Vice-Chairman Gao Xiqing said on Wednesday. [file]Gao expressed concern on April 26 about the speed of the domestic share rally, which had boosted the value of the NSSF's equity portfolio beyond the prudential limit set by its board.

As a result, he said then, the fund was selling into the rally. Its assets at the time totalled 450 billion yuan ($59 billion).

Gao sidestepped questions on Wednesday about the near-term prospects for shares.

The Shanghai Composite Index , the country's main index, has swung wildly in the past week since Beijing, concerned that the market was boiling over, tripled the stamp tax on stock trades to 0.3 percent from 0.1 percent.

Gao, who renewed complaints about bureaucratic delays in winning approval for various investment opportunities, said the NSSF was paying attention to fast-growing non-listed companies.

Asked about Beijing's plans to require state-owned firms to pay dividends to the government, Gao said one option under discussion was that the payouts should go to the NSSF to help strengthen China's social safety net.

The NSSF's investments include a stake in the Bohai Industrial Investment Fund Management Corp., set up last year with central government support to help turn Tianjin and its environs into a regional economic powerhouse.

Although the fund's remit is to invest primarily in infrastructure, manufacturing and companies that could attract foreign investment, Managing Director Ma Jun said he was keen to buy into banks, brokerages, insurers and other financial firms.

He said he would be interested in Agricultural Bank of China, the only one of the country's big state-owned banks yet to receive a government bailout. But Ma said his 6.08 billion yuan fund had not held talks with AgBank.