China treasury bond futures open steadily Thursday

China's treasury bond futures opened steadily on Thursday, with contract for settlement in September opening flat at 94.5 yuan (15.36 U.S. dollars).

The December contract opened 0.03 percent higher at 94.9 yuan.

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

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