Lock-up shares worth 254 bln yuan eligible for trade in Jan

Lock-up shares worth 254 billion yuan (41.5 billion U.S. dollars) from 115 companies will become eligible for trade on China's stock markets in January.

This month's figure is an increase of 9.81 percent over December, according to the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges.

Under China's market rules, major shareholders of non-tradable stocks are subject to one or two years of lock-up before they are permitted to trade the shares.

On the ChiNext Board, 44 companies will see non-tradable shares worth 42.2 billion yuan become tradable this month, the highest value in a single month since the board, which tracks hi-tech firms and growth companies, was launched in October 2009.

On the Shenzhen SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) Board, 36 companies will see lock-up shares worth 50 billion yuan released to the market this month, the highest since June 2013.

Analysts said an increase in new stock supply this January is expected to add pressure to the capital market.

China's capital market is experiencing a near five-year high as strong market sentiment propelled the key Shanghai index up 53 percent in 2014.