TOKYO - Japan got the permission from China to purchase 65 billion yuan (about $10.3 billion) worth of Chinese government bond, Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Tuesday.

It was the first time the Japanese government announced the specific figure of its permitted allotment of Chinese government bond. ?

Azumi told reporters that the size was "appropriate" in view of strengthening the economic ties between the two countries.

During Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's visit to China last December, the two sides had reached consensus on Japan's purchase of Chinese government bond.

Azumi said it depended on market conditions as to when to start buying.