OREANDA-NEWS. September 02, 2011. China's Lion Fund Management Co will launch this week the country's first mutual fund that invests in overseas oil and gas-related assets, as Chinese money managers step up innovation to woo investors haunted by inflation concerns.

The fund will invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and energy funds, Lion said in a statement.

Chinese fund managers are rushing to roll out alternative investment products as domestic stocks and bonds lose appeal amid growing concerns over China's growth and inflation.

Three gold funds have been established in China this year while the country's first wine investment fund was launched this week, adding to a series of commodity-related funds that were designed to help investors fight inflation.

Lion's new fund, to be launched under the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) scheme today, would invest at least 80 percent of its total assets in overseas energy-related products, including ETFs backed by oil and gas.

Earlier this year Lion launched China's first fund that invests in overseas real estate investment trusts (REITs).