However, the treasures he collected have turned into vapor, as the volatile market nose-dived late last month, with a 60 to 70 percent decrease in the value of stamps.

But Ning said: "I am not a stranger to the ups and downs in the market. But I hope that the bull will come back as soon as possible."

Stamp collecting, long a popular hobby in China, is now becoming a new way of investing for business-savvy Chinese like Ning, who has blazed a new trail by bringing in a bit of cash instead of the traditional stock and security trading and regular salaries.

There are about 30 million subscribers for new stamps in China - regular customers that order new issues of stamps every year before they are issued, while 4 million stamp fans have joined a nation-wide club, dubbed the All-China Philatelic Federation, through which they can trade stamps and tips.

China gave stamp trading its stamp of approval in 1985 and the practice mushroomed into a new revenue source for State coffers. Since then, stamp markets have been springing up in China and all its provincial administrations have set up trading markets.

However, lack of regulations have prompted speculation and transaction, as well as under-the-table transactions and inflows of fake stamps. This sent the markets into a bumpy slide.

But their enthusiasm rebounded as trading markets were flooded with investors late this March after the exchange staged a big comeback when China revised its policies in issuing stamps early this year, including curbing the printing and circulation of new stamps and improving designs.

(China Daily 05/31/2001)