China's five-year treasury bond futures opened higher on Tuesday, with the contract for settlement in June 2016 opened 0.035 percent higher at 101.165 yuan (about U.S. dollars).

The contract for settlement in September 2016 opened 0.229 percent higher at 100.500 yuan. The contract for settlement in December 2016 opened 0.040 percent higher at 99.595 yuan.

The contracts are agreements to buy or sell treasury bonds at a predetermined price and set date. They allow investors to bet on and profit from the movements in the value of the bonds.

The treasury bond futures were launched at the Shanghai-based China Financial Futures Exchange and started trading on Sept. 6, 2013.