China oil firms could get FX to invest abroad-report

BEIJING Feb 21 (Reuters) - China could use its $2 trillion in foreign exchange reserves to support foreign mergers and acquisitions by Chinese oil and gas companies, the China Daily said on Saturday.

Low-interest loans and capital injections could go to firms like oil giants PetroChina (0857.HK)(601857.SS), Sinopec (0386.HK)(600028.SS) and CNOOC that aim to expand overseas as the global recession lowers share prices of foreign firms, the English-language newspaper said.

The fund proposed by the National Energy Administration this month would diversify the use of China's reserves away from dollar-denominated assets like U.S. treasury bonds, it said, citing an industry journal, the China Petroleum Daily.

Senior officials this week said China would use its reserves, by far the world's largest, to support economic growth by financing overseas deals and boosting domestic demand.

CNOOC's listed arm is CNOOC Ltd (0883.HK)(CEO.N). (Reporting by Beijing newsroom and Benjamin Kang Lim; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)