Shang Fulin, head of China's securities market watchdog, said Thursday that the preparations for setting up stock-index futures have been basically finished.

Shang, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), said preparations in terms of technology and mechanism are near completion, but investors still need to get prepared.

He did not give a specific date for putting the futures into operation, only noting that it will debut "when the conditions are ripe."

"Stock-index futures is a big issue for China's capital market," he said, noting that China still lacks the experience in derivative financial products.

The stock-index futures is usually used as a tool against drastic fluctuations in the stock market.

Shang was addressing a plenary session at the Inaugural Annual Meeting of the New Champions hosted by the World Economic Forum in China's northeastern coastal city of Dalian.

Media reports said qualified foreign institutional investors (QFII) would be authorized to participate in stock-index futures trading in China, but the CSRC declined to comment.