CIC president cautious but warming to US

China's US$500 billion sovereign wealth fund is more optimistic about the United States economy than those of Europe and Japan, although it is generally cautious about the outlook for major economies.

"There are many things to be cautious about and many things that need to be changed," Gao Xiqing, the president of China Investment Corp, said on the sidelines of the National People's Congress yesterday.

A prudent stance was appropriate when fiscal and financial policies on the heels of the global financial crisis and Europe's debt crisis had yet to take effect in leading economies, Gao said.

For example, regulators launched many draconian measures affecting the operations of financial institutions after the 2008 financial crisis, he said. The structure and products of the financial industry were being changed, but very few people could map out clearly the direction of the changes. 

Gao said CIC did not face pressure from the central government to pursue short-term returns, as its performance was evaluated only every 10 years.

"We are a truly long-term investor," he said. "We don't have any pressure to produce a certain amount of money every year."