China's central bank will issue a set of panda-featured commemorative coins on September 30 to mark the China International Import Expo (CIIE).

This set includes one gold coin and one silver coin, and both are circulated as legal tender, the People's Bank of China said on its website.

The head side of the coins depicts the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests which serves as the altar of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, along with the country name, year of issuance and the Chinese name of the import expo.

A mother-and-son pair of giant pandas are on the tail side of the coins, together with the English name of the import expo.

The gold coin measures 22 millimeters in diameter, contains 8 grams of gold and has a face value of 100 yuan (about 14 U.S. dollars). A maximum of 10,000 such coins will be in circulation.

The silver coin measures 40 millimeters in diameter, contains 30 grams of silver and has a face value of 10 yuan. There will be a maximum of 20,000 such coins in circulation.

The second CIIE will be held in Shanghai between November 5 and 10 this year and over 3,000 enterprises from about 150 countries and regions have signed up for this import fair.

Last year, 172 countries, regions and international organizations and over 3,600 enterprises participated in the inaugural CIIE, held also from November 5 to 10 in Shanghai. It was the world's first import-themed national-level expo.