(Yicai Global) Sept. 20 -- Overseas investors have flocked to China's mainland stock markets this month, the Economic Information Daily reported, saying the addition or increased weighting of Chinese equities in global benchmarks and the attractive price of yuan assets were the two main reasons.

Net inflows of foreign capital have reached CNY45.9 billion (USD5.9 billion) since Sept. 1, making up 27 percent of this year's total, the report said. About 64 percent of that went into Shanghai-listed shares and the rest to Shenzhen.

This is just the beginning. The broader trend is toward increasing capital inflows, industry insiders told the paper.

Amid the opening-up of China's capital markets, MSCI started increasing the weighting of Chinese equities in its global indexes from last year. FTSE Russell did so in June. New York-based S&P Dow Jones will follow suit and add almost 1,100 Shanghai or Shenzhen-listed companies to its S&P Emerging BMI on Sept. 23.

Whereas policies are becoming looser around the globe, China has stuck to a prudent monetary policy that has propped up asset valuations, said Chen Li, director of the Chuancai Securities Research Institute. Increasing capital inflows are expected to continue in the medium and long-term, Chen added.

So far this year, China's mainland stock markets have accumulated CNY167.5 billion (USD23.6 billion) in foreign capital, with 53 percent headed for Shenzhen equities.

Editor: Emmi Laine