China stock index futures open mixed Wednesday

China's stock index futures opened mostly higher on Wednesday, with the contract for settlement in August, the most actively traded, down 0.25 percent to open at 2,363.6.

The contract for settlement in September opened flat at 2,376 points. The December contract gained 1.21 percent to open at 2,423 points, while the March 2015 contract opened 0.15 percent lower at 2,418.2 points.

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.