China's Ministry of Finance (MOF) issued euro-denominated sovereign bonds worth four billion euros in Paris on Tuesday.

It is the first time in the past 15 years that the Chinese government issues euro-denominated sovereign bonds. It is also the largest foreign currency-denominated sovereign bond issued by China at a single time so far, and the first Chinese sovereign bond issued and listed in France.

The bonds are due in seven, 12 and 20 years. The three-part deal was split between two billion euros of seven-year debt with a yield of 0.197 percent, one billion euros of 12-year bonds yielding 0.618 percent, and another one billion euros of 20-year bonds that offer a yield of 1.078 percent.

The total purchase amount of the bond exceeds 20 billion euros, about five times the size of issuing price, with 57 percent of the funds coming from Europe, and 43 percent stemming from outside Europe. The bond will then be listed on the Euronext and the London Stock Exchange.

According to the Wall Street Journal, it was a departure from the past two years, when the only foreign-currency bonds China issued were in U.S. dollars -- three billion U.S. dollars debt in 2018, and two billion the year before.

This move has showcased China's high-level and all-round opening-up to the international market, with the European investors in particular, and bears far-reaching significance for China's deeper integration into the international financial market.

Bank of China, Bank of Communications, China International Capital Corp, BofA Securities, Citigroup, Commerzbank, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Societe Generale, and Standard Chartered were the joint lead managers and book runners of the sale, according to the pricing sheet.