China's Bank of Communications to open branch in San Francisco

China's Bank of Communications said Wednesday it plans to set up a branch in San Francisco, its second branch in the United States, as it moves to expand overseas.

The country's fifth largest lender said its has approved the establishment of the branch and will submit the plan for regulatory approval, according to a statement with the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Bank of Communications has reported its first-half earnings grew 81.2 percent from a year earlier to 15.5 billion yuan (2.3 billion dollars) on a rise in net interest income and solid growth of fee-based businesses.

The bank also has branches in New York, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore and representative offices in Frankfurt and London.