BEIJING — Overseas investors increased their holdings of Chinese bonds in April amid the country's continued opening-up efforts.

The total amount of yuan bonds owned by overseas institutions reached 3.22 trillion yuan (about $499 billion) as of the end of April, up 64.86 billion yuan from a month earlier, data from China Central Depository & Clearing Co Ltd showed.

Specifically, treasury bonds saw the largest month-on-month growth of 51.74 billion yuan, followed by bonds issued by policy banks.

As the COVID-19 uncertainties continue to weigh on the world economy, the stability of yuan-denominated assets will be a major focus of global investors, analysts said.