Two South Korean ships have been released by China after being seized for an alleged collision with a local fishing boat, officials said Wednesday.

A tugboat and a barge were impounded on March 18 in the eastern Chinese port city of Ningbo after they reportedly collided with the Chinese vessel while sailing through Chinese waters west of the Korean Peninsula.

Nine Chinese fishermen went missing as it sank.

The owner of the ships has completed talks about compensation through an insurance firm, according to officials at the South Korean Consulate General in Shanghai.

The ships plan to return home within the week, they added.

(Yonhap)