Bank of China's mainland-listed A shares shot up nearly 30% at the open, to 3.99 yuan (50 cents). The shares ended at 3.79 yuan, after trading between 3.76 yuan and 4.05 yuan, up 23% from their initial public offering price of 3.08 yuan. Trading was active, with 1.76 billion shares changing hands.

The strong debut of Bank of China helped lift the Shanghai Composite Index 2.2% higher to close at 1718.56.

In the long run, a steady performance of Bank of China, which has about a 20% weighting in the Shanghai Composite Index and is the Shanghai exchange's biggest listed company in terms of capitalization, will help stabilize the general market, analysts said.

The Shanghai Composite Index had risen 9% during the past three weeks on anticipation of a strong debut by Bank of China.

Given Bank of China's projected earnings per share of 0.13 yuan, a share price of 3.79 yuan suggests a price/earnings ratio of 29. This is well above the average price/earnings ratio of 16 for the five existing bank shares on the A-share market, analysts said.

Bank of China is the first of China's Big Four banks to be listed on the mainland. The four-Bank of China along with China Construction Bank Corp., Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China-account for 60% of the nation's banking assets.

"Bank of China's domestic listing sets the tone for the listing of other big banks on the domestic market and paves the way for other overseas-listed banks to come back to the domestic market," said a Guangzhou-based fund manager.

China Construction Bank and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China are also considering A-share offerings.

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