Overseas institutions continued to increase holdings of Chinese bonds, demonstrating confidence in the market despite short-term uncertainties caused by the coronavirus outbreak, market data has showed.

Overseas institutional investors saw the net purchase of Chinese bonds worth 43 billion yuan (about 6.1 billion U.S. dollars) after the Spring Festival, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

As China opens its financial sector, its bond market has become an important part of global asset allocation.

The China Foreign Exchange Trade System said it will continue to improve overseas services and reinforce financial infrastructure to facilitate bond trade.

The increased holdings came despite the short-term impact brought about by the novel coronavirus outbreak, which disrupted economic activities and threatened to drag down first-quarter growth.

As Chinese government enacts different policies to contain the spread of the epidemic and mobilize the population to return to work with protective measures, analysts expect growth to rebound after the containment of restrained demand and production.