The Communist Party of China's disciplinary watchdog closed graft investigations into eight high-profile officials and handed over their cases to prosecutors in 2013, a senior discipline inspector revealed on January 10.

The officials were Zhou Zhenhong, Liu Tienan, Ni Fake, Wang Suyi, Li Daqiu, Tong Mingqian, Yang Kun and Qi Pingjing, said Huang Shuxian, Deputy Secretary of the Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and Minister of Supervision, at a press conference.

Five of the eight officials previously held provincial-level positions, two were senior officials of central government departments while one was senior executive of a state bank.

The cases were only a few among the 31 high-profile officials investigated by the CCDI last year, with the remaining 23 still under investigation, including Jiang Jiemin, former head of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, and Li Dongsheng, former Vice Minister of Public Security, Huang added.

Last year, the Party's discipline inspection agencies punished about 182,000 officials nationwide, 13.3 percent more than in 2012, according to Huang.

Among them, about 150,000 were subject to Party discipline punishment and 48,900 were subject to administrative punishment.