China's securities and futures sector would conduct an emergency drill on Saturday to test the readiness for the Y2K computer problem, an official of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said in Beijing on December 2. Liu Jun, from the CSRC Information Center, said all CSRC local offices, stock and futures exchanges, companies and their sales departments would take part in the drill.

The aim of the drill is to test the emergency plans and ensure that staff members of the sector are well trained for Y2K emergencies, liu said.

The CSRC also decided that stock market will not open on December 31 and remain closed until January 3 to ensure a smooth transition of the computer systems to the year 2000.

From 12:00 on December 31 to January 2, all the systems in the sector will take part in a trans-century test organized by the stock and futures exchanges.

The systems will resume on January 3, while business will open on January 4. (Xinhua)