The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, said Friday that it has signed a 150-billion-yuan (US$22.12 billion) currency swap agreement with the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

The agreement has a three-year maturity and can be extended if both sides agree, according to the statement posted on the PBOC website.

The move is aimed at promoting bilateral trade and direct investment, it said.

Since late 2008, China has signed currency swap agreements with the Republic of Korea (ROK), Hong Kong, Malaysia, Belarus, Indonesia, Argentina and Iceland.

(Xinhua News Agency July 23, 2010)