China plans 8 bln yuan govt bond in HK - paper

HONG KONG, Sept 2 (Reuters) - China's Ministry of Finance plans to issue up to 8 billion yuan ($1.18 billion) in government bonds in Hong Kong as early as this month, a local newspaper reported on Thursday.

The ministry was also considering listing the bond on the Hong Kong exchange, which would make it the first yuan-denominated bond to be listed in the city, the Apple Daily reported on Thursday quoting market sources.

Last year, the Finance Ministry issued 6 billion yuan in yuan-denominated bonds in Hong Kong to retail and institutional investors.

Bank of China Ltd (3988.HK)(601988.SS) also planned an up to 5 billion yuan bond issue in two tranches with maturities of two and three years for retail investors for subscription from Sept 8-14, the newspaper said.

China Development Bank [CHDB.UL] and Export-Import Bank of China had won approval to each issue bonds of up to 5 billion yuan in Hong Kong this year, the newspaper said.

Issuers including China Construction Bank Corp (CCB) (0939.HK)(601939.SS), Bank of East Asia Ltd (0023.HK), and China's Ministry of Finance have sold a total of nearly 40 billion yuan in yuan-denominated bonds in Hong Kong since 2007. (Reporting by Twinnie Siu and Alison Leung; Editing by Chris Lewis)