Japan's Ministry of Finance said China sold a net 467.7 billion yen ($5.61 billion) worth of Japanese bonds last year, its deepest cut since 2005.

China sold a net 177.3 billion yen in December, selling 243.5 billion yen in short-term debt and purchasing 66.1 billion yen in long-term debt, according to the ministry's data.

"China sold shorter-maturity bonds for profit-taking after a period of stronger yen," said Tetsuya Inoue, an analyst at Nomura Securities. "It bought longer-term bonds because Japan is one of China's most important trade partners."

The Japanese yen weakened against the dollar by 3.9% in November, the first time that the yen had fallen following consecutive gains starting in April, 2010. Also in November, the yield on the Japanese benchmark 10-year bond rose by 26.5 basis points, the biggest rise since April 2008.

The ministry said Britain became the largest holder of Japanese bonds in December, with a net purchase of 2.31 trillion yen, while France was the biggest seller that month.

China's business press carried the story above on Tuesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.