China's five-year treasury bond futures opened lower on Wednesday, with the contract for settlement in December 2016 opening 0.03 percent lower at 101.375 yuan (about 15.3 U.S. dollars).

The contract for settlement in March 2017 opened 0.035 percent lower at 101.04 yuan. The contract for settlement in June 2017 opened at 100.65 yuan, 0.134 percent lower from the previous close.

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.

Source : XINHUA