The People's Bank of China (PBC) issued its first offshore yuan-denominated note in London on Tuesday, a "significant" move that shows the government's determination to promote the currency's offshore markets, experts noted on Wednesday.

The central bank issued up to 5 billion yuan ($788 million) of one-year notes, the nation's debut issue of yuan-denominated notes outside the domestic market, the PBC said in a statement on Wednesday.

The move will enrich the supply of high-quality yuan-denominated financial products in offshore markets and boost cross-border investment and trade, according to the statement. The yield on the issue is 3.1 percent, the PBC said.

The announcement comes amid President Xi Jinping's State visit to the UK this week. 

Mark Boleat, policy chairman of the City of London, welcomed the issuance of PBC's first overseas debt sale in London.

"The first such issuance outside of China further cements London's role as a leading offshore yuan center," Boleat told the Global Times Wednesday.

Xi Junyang, a professor in the Department of Finance at the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, told the Global Times Wednesday that the issue shows the world that the Chinese government attaches great importance to the development of the yuan's offshore markets, which will boost the currency's global usage. 

According to Xi of the Shanghai university, the yuan's offshore market used to be restricted to Asian centers such as Singapore, but it might expand to other areas of the world, especially Europe, after yuan-denominated business grows in London, the world's largest financial center.

He also noted this might be seen as a positive factor by the IMF when deciding whether to include the yuan in its Special Drawing Rights (SDR) currency basket next month.

China has moved to boost  internationalization of the yuan, such as setting up the Cross-border Interbank Payment System on October 8 to facilitate the use of the currency in international trade.

For the UK, developing yuan-related business may expand its influence as a global financial center, Tan Yaling, dean of the Beijing-based China Forex Investment Research Institute, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

But Tan added that the 3.1 percent interest rate on the note might be "too high" and exert great pressure on the central bank.

Offshore yuan business has developed fast in the UK in recent years. The PBC announced on Wednesday that it renewed a currency swap agreement with the Bank of Scotland and increased the value of the agreement to 350 billion yuan from 200 billion yuan.

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