BEIJING — China will further open its bond market to foreign investors in a step-by-step manner along with the internationalization of RMB, central bank officials said here on March 10.

China’s bond market has always been open to foreign investors, and the progress made in the internalization of RMB last year has particularly boosted foreign investors’ interest, central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan told a news conference on the sidelines of the ongoing annual legislative session.

He cited the RMB’s inclusion in the International Monetary Fund’s Special Drawing Right (SDR) currency basket last year.

So far there are some 400 overseas institutional investors holding bonds worth more than 800 billion yuan (about $115.74 billion) in China’s market backed by central bank’s supporting policies, according to Pan Gongsheng, deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China.

This marks an increase of more than 100 in investor number and some 150 billion yuan in investment volume from a year ago, he said.

Overseas governments, institutions and enterprises have issued more than 60 billion yuan of bonds, or “panda bonds”, in China by the end of last year, Pan added.

The central bank will further improve institutional arrangements and promote exchanges and communications with foreign investors to provide a more friendly and convenient investment environment, said Pan.