Residents of major Chinese cities are the first group to put out the call for qualified financial advisers who can help them better manage their money.

A survey carried out by the China Social Survey Office in cities of Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Guangzhou shows that 74 percent of the respondents were interested in services designed to help individuals manage their money, and 41 percent said they need such services.

And according to China Business Climate Monitoring Center, 70 percent of the Chinese people would like to find a good financial advisor to guide their spending.

Actually, in recent years rising individual capital has stimulated the growth of such financial services in the country.

Three years ago, the Bank of China, the Communications Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) began to provide a few money-managing services to individual clients, including transactions in foreign exchanges.

At present, these banks have established their own money- management offices, and ICBC, in particular, now offers more than 30 kinds of services including account closing and personal investment for clients.

In Shanghai, the availability of money-management services is also in demand so that the city, a rising international financial center, can provide comprehensive financial services for China's economic and social development.

A survey carried out in Shanghai shows that most local residents believe money-management plans made without expert advice is "very risky," and 87 percent of the respondents said they accept banks' suggestions on how to use their cash.

Forty percent hoped to have regular contact with financial experts and said that banks should provide services such as personal investment client consultation.

In Guangzhou, capital of economically developed Guangdong Province in south China, 33 percent of the local people questioned said they hope to see their money invested in stocks and state treasury bonds, used to pay insurance premiums, and deposited in banks. And 22 percent said they want banks to provide timely information and consultation services.

At present, 13.9 percent and 9.7 percent of the total assets owned by Chinese people are respectively invested in buying state treasury bonds and stocks; 5.07 and 1.6 percentage points, respectively, higher than last year's same period, according to a survey of the People's Bank of China last February.

At present, experts pointed out, asset-management services are very weak in China since they lag far behind the development of the country's money and capital markets.

And the lack of professionals in the field, limited software, and no laws to standardize activities all hold back the spread of such services.

The Agricultural Bank of China recently opened an asset- management center in Shanghai which offers a range of customer- oriented services. The center has experts in the stock, insurance and consultation fields, and is overseen by management and advisory committees.

The center plans to cooperate with its foreign counterparts to expand its business worldwide in the future.

(People?s Daily November 19, 2001)