NEW YORK - Singapore-listed China Fishery Group filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York on Thursday (June 30), the Wall Street Journal reported.

The mainboard company's Hong Kong parent Pacific Andes International Holdings Ltd also filed for bankruptcy in New York, said the Journal, along with more than 15 China Fishery affiliates.

Four other affiliates, including Singapore-listed Pacific Andes Resources Development Ltd, filed for chapter 15, the part of the bankruptcy code covering international insolvencies, said the paper.

Shares of both China Fishery and Pacific Andes Resources have been suspended from trading since November last year.

By filing for bankruptcy in New York, the company will receive the benefits of US bankruptcy law, including the so-called automatic stay preventing bondholders and other creditors from any from seizing its assets, said the paper.

In court papers, China Fishery officials said they filed for bankruptcy to protect the company's business from the possibility of "hostile and aggressive action" from certain creditors, the paper added.