Chinese Loans Climb in January

Economy

China’s net new bank loans soared to a record 3.3 trillion yuan in January, up from 3.2 trillion yuan in the same month last year and 1.1 trillion yuan in December 2019, according to data from the People’s Bank of China. New bank loans typically peak in January as banks front-load lending.

Meanwhile, China trimmed its one-year loan prime rate today to 4.05% from 4.15%, Reuters reports. This move to ease businesses’ financing costs follows China’s central bank lowering the rate on one-year medium-term lending facility loans to financial institutions on 17 February to 3.15% from 3.25%.