China loans hits record US$1.73 trillion in first half of 2020 after strong June as coronavirus recovery continues
- Banks extended a record 12.09 trillion yuan (US$1.73 trillion) of new loans in the first half of 2020, beating a previous peak of 9.67 trillion yuan in the first half of 2019
- Chinese banks extended 1.81 trillion yuan (US$258 billion) in new yuan loans in June, up from 1.48 trillion yuan in May
New bank lending in China rose 22.3 per cent in June from May as authorities continued to boost credit and ease policy to get the world’s second-largest economy humming again after a sharp coronavirus-induced contraction.
That pushed bank lending in the first half of the year to a record 12.09 trillion yuan (US$1.73 trillion), beating a previous peak of 9.67 trillion yuan in the first half of 2019, the data showed.
Analysts polled by Reuters had predicted new yuan loans would rise to 1.80 trillion yuan in June.
The central bank is still likely to keep interest rates close to record lows and it will probably continue to lean on quantitative tools to shore up lending
The monthly tally was 9 per cent higher than 1.66 trillion yuan a year earlier. While lending in China typically picks up in June, analysts say policymakers want to maintain strong credit growth until the economy gets back on solid footing.