This undated file photo shows an investor monitoring stock prices on his phone at a stock brokerage in Shanghai. (LYU LIANG / CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - Lock-up shares worth about 117 billion yuan (around $18.4 billion) will become eligible for trade on China's bourses next week.

From Monday to Friday, a total of 4.198 billion shares will become tradable on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses, according to data from financial information provider Wind.

Under China's stock market rules, major shareholders must wait for one to two years before they are permitted to sell their shares.

Chinese stocks closed lower on Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.66 percent to close at 3,462.95 points. The Shenzhen Component Index closed 1.55 percent lower at 13,224.38 points.  

READ MORE: More lock-up shares to be up for trade on China's bourses