China's education watchdog expressed concern Friday at the increasing number of college students investing in stocks hoping to cash in the country's booming stock market.

Wang Xuming, spokesman with the Ministry of Education, said at a press conference that the ministry does not encourage college undergraduates to enter the stock market.

The students can hardly assume the risk as they have no fixed income and most of their capital comes from their parents, Wang added.

The education ministry has noticed college students' enthusiasm for the stock market in recent months, according to Wang.

Media reports said organizations relating to the stock market have been set up in some universities.

After four years in the doldrums, China's stock markets began to rebound at the beginning of 2006, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index nearly doubling in a year.

The number of new trading accounts opened by individuals in the Chinese mainland's two bourses reached five million in the first quarter of this year, compared with 3.08 million for the whole of last year.

China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has warned people about the risks of stock market investment in a notice issued earlier this month and has urged stock exchanges, securities dealers and related authorities to educate investors on the risks.

Chinese shares rebounded from Thursday's downturn, hitting a new high on Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks both yuan-denominated A shares and hard-currency B shares closing at 4,179.78 points, up 28.65 points from the previous close.