China's key Hushen 300 index futures opened mixed on Thursday, as the contract for settlement in October 2017 opened flat at 3,844 points.

The November 2017 contract opened 0.04 percent lower at 3,838.4 points. The December 2017 contract opened 0.25 percent higher at 3,845 points. The March 2018 contract opened 0.02 percent higher at 3,826.4 points.

The stock-index contracts, agreements to buy or sell the blue-chip 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 and started trading from April 16, 2010. The CFFEX has set the base value for all the four contracts at 3,399 points.