A Chinese policy think tank has called for Beijing to issue 2 trillion yuan ($280 billion) of special treasury bonds to set up a stock market stabilisation fund, the 21st Century Business Herald reported on Wednesday.

China’s 200 million-strong army of retail investors was supposed to help the market turn a corner. Instead, it has become a source of weakness.

Institute of Finance and Banking under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences says the fund would enhance the stability of the capital market and promote steady growth.

Xi Jinping wants a strong stock market and is doubling down on his efforts to build one. Whether the Chinese leader is a true convert to the religion of shareholder value, or simply wants to boost some $11 trillion of equities to stimulate the world's second-largest economy,