China has allocated $24 billion in long-term foreign debt quotas to foreign banks for 2012 to allow the lenders to bring more money into the Chinese economy, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on Thursday.

Among the banks the quota applies to are the China units of HSBC Holdings Plc <0005.HK>, Deutsche Bank Ag , JP Morgan , Citigroup , Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp and Bank of East Asia <0023.HK>, the economic planning agency said.

The six banks are involved in a foreign debt pilot project, the agency said, without specifying the details of the project.

As the Chinese economy shows signs of slower growth, the government is trying to encourage long-term capital inflows. The move is designed to allow foreign banks to play an active role in promoting China's economic growth, NDRC said.

(The story has been corrected to clarifies that the $24 billion quota applies to all foreign banks, not just the six mentioned in story)

(Reporting by Zhou Xin and Lucy Hornby; Editing by Chris Lewis)

China Citigroup