Corporate bonds in Jiangsu province reached 43.23 billion yuan ($6.77 billion) for the first half of the year, ranking top in the country.

Issuance increased 168 percent compared with the same period last year. In the first six months of 2011, only 13 corporate bonds were issued and the issuance volume was 16.11 billion yuan, according to the Development and Reform Commission of Jiangsu province.

Due to the government's policy of strengthening financial support for the real economy, the approval process for bond issuance has been shortened since early this year.

In June, enterprise bonds in Jiangsu reached 10.1 billion yuan, accounting for 23.4 percent of the province's total value for the first six months of the year.

The distribution of enterprise-issued debt is balanced in Jiangsu, with 14 issues in the south, 12 in the middle and seven in the north of the province.

A total of 14 bonds were funded for key infrastructure construction projects including the establishment of Haibin New District in Lianyungang city and the international logistic industry zone in Changshu city.