BEIJING (REUTERS) - China's social security fund's annual investment returns surpassed 9 per cent in 2017, a senior official at the fund said on Monday (March 5).

Lou Jiwei, the chairman of the National Council for Social Security Fund, spoke to Reuters on the sidelines of China's annual Parliament meeting.

Established in 2000, China's social security fund was designed to aid the country's ageing population and be a strategic reserve to support future social security expenditure.

The fund had an investment return of 1.73 per cent in 2016 and oversaw 2.04 trillion yuan (S$425 billion) in assets, according to state media reports.