Bank of China (BOC) signed an agreement here Wednesday with Sichuan Province to provide areas hit by the May 12 quake with at least 300 billion yuan (43.9 billion U.S. dollars) in loans for reconstruction over the next five years.

The Sichuan government has estimated post-quake rebuilding will cost more than 1.6 trillion yuan.

The Beijing-based bank, one of the country's top four lenders, said it would also offer financing support for small and medium-sized companies in Sichuan.

The 8.0-magnitude quake, centered in Sichuan, left more than 80,000 people dead or missing and millions homeless.

(Xinhua News Agency March 4, 2009)