Defusing Risks China’s financial system is undergoing reforms, but the outcome isn’t guaranteed

China’s central bank is paying unprecedented attention to the stability of the financial sector. On May 24, the People’s Bank of China (PBC), the country’s central bank, issued the Financial Stability Report 2013, saying that one of the key tasks for 2013 would be to improve the system of monitoring, assessing and disposing of systemic risks, which include local government debt and shadow banking.     

MESSAGES OF CONFIDENCE

Fears and rumors that China’s slowing growth would drag down the global economy have surfaced since last year.Right before the opening of this year’s full sessions of China’s national legislature and top political advisory body,Moody’s Investors Service downgraded its outlook for China’s government credit ratings from"stable"to"negative"on March 2,citing reasons including rising government debt and a continuing fall in reserves.In response,top officials in charge of economic affairs met the press,aiming to reassure the world by saying that China would continue to contribute to global growth.Edited excerpts of their comments follow:     

Economy

正China Issues Rules to Control Local Debt Risks China’s State Council in early October released rules to strengthen the supervision and management of local government debt,the fi rst such directive ever introduced by the Chinese cabinet.According to the State Council document,local governments will be conferred the right of debt fi nancing within a quota.A standard debt fi nancing mechanism for local     

将我们心中的温暖传递到读者心中——献给《中国民族》杂志60岁生日（英文）

<正>Published and issued in six languages in China and abroad,our pictorial magazine China’s Ethnic Groups is a comprehensive periodical detailing the current political government policy,livelihood and traditions of all 56 of China’s nationalities,as designated and supported by the central government.The magazine has lasted for 60 years,a rarity in today’s print publishing     

Time to Pay Up

<正>Local government debt, while staggeringly high, is still within the nation’s safety threshold Yunnan Highway Development and Investment Co.,     

A Retrospective Look at 2012 China-EU Relations

IT’S a fact that underscores the rebalancing of the world economic order:The European Union is China’s Ilargest trading partner,and China is the European Union’s second-largest,after the United States.In 2012,China maintained relatively rapid economic growth,while the EU struggled over member states’debt crises.Though last year was not remarkable in terms of China-EU trade volume,it did see the     

Debt Levels Under Control

正China’s mounting debt won’t lead to a crisis,but corporate debt needs addressingRising debt levels are prompting concerns over a possible debt crisis, with some believing it will pose risks to the global economy. How serious is China’s debt issue?By the end of 2015,China’s total debt had amounted to 168.48 trillion yuan($25.3 trillion).The debt-to-GDP ratio had reached 249 percent,Li Yang,an acade-     

China Seeks Economic Transformation

The financial crisis that started in the United States is spreading worldwide, and its impact on China’s economy is increasing daily. Difficulties and problems that accumulated in China’s long period of fast economic growth have gradually become apparent. Both the Chinese government and enterprises are considering how to transform and upgrade China’s economy through changing development mode and adjusting the industrial structure, while coping with the financial crisis. Therefore, guaranteeing economic grow...     

A Worrying Trend

As China’s farm output falls, can we expect soaring food prices?Agriculture is an important foundation for China’s economic and social development, and grain security for 1.3 billion Chinese is the top priority of the government. This year, farm produce price fluctuations upset the planting     

MARKET WATCH

The financing vehicles of local governments remain a concern despite government efforts to control their mountains of debt.Mergers and ac-quisitions are on the rise in the real estate sector as deep-pocketed developers take over financially starved rivals.China snaps up long-term Japanese govern- ment debt as the country attempts to diversify its holdings of foreign exchange reserves.Growth in the non-manufacturing sector has slowed,due to a drop in the purchasing managers index in May.Ford Motor aims to expand in China, hoping to cash in on the country’s auto market boom.The international ac-counting firm PwC expects China to become the world’s top banking market by 2023.     

Push and Pull： Opposing Forces on China＇s Growl

IN the second half of 2011,the European debt crisis spread further,sending shockwaves throughout the world and dragging down the global economic recovery. The world is turning its gaze from the U.S. with its sluggish economic recovery and Japan with its lasting depression to emerging economies like China and Brazil. The momentum of China’s economic growth will not only become the main concern of China’s major trade partners,but will also be a focus of world major transnational corporations’ attention.     

China＇s Strategic Choice： Tackling Global Climate Change Head-on

CLIMATE change is a grave chal- lenge facing humanity in the 21st century, and one to which the Chinese government has attached great importance. It is a key strategy and a resolute policy of the government to actively tackle this issue for the sake of China’s economic and social development. China will continue to take action and make positive contributions in the fight against climate change.     

The Euro's Nemesis

Greece’s debt crisis underlines the need for tougher and smarter governance for the euro zone Since the news from Greece of an unexpectedly large surge in its government deficit and debt broke at the end of 2009,there     

Crime and Punishment

正China’s anti-corruption campaign enters 2018 with renewed vigor The government’s anti-graft campaign has made remarkable progress since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China(CPC)in late2012,and yet the battle is far from over.This was the message announced loud and clear at the latest session of the CPC’s anticorruption body.     

The Risks Are Looming

China’s real estate market has polarized,and the government needs to take action Selling season is in full swing in China’s real estate market.According to statistics from China Index Academy,the research arm of Soufun,China’s largest property website,the average price of new homes in 100 major Chinese cities rose 1.07 percent in September     

Calming Local Debt Fears

<正>Local governments in China, barred from directly selling bonds and taking out bank loans, have set up thousands of financing vehicles to raise money to fund infrastructure projects. A first-ever audit found that these local government financing vehicles have accumulated a record breaking debt of 10.7 trillion yuan ($1.7 trillion).But there’s no need to panic over this debt, said Xu Lin, Director of the Department of Fiscal and Financial Affairs of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), in a question-andanswer statement posted on the NDRC’s website on August 29.Edited excerpts follow:     

Ten Years after China＇s Accession to the WTO： Dancing with the World

In the run up to and the period after China’s accession to the WTO in 2001, "the wolf is coming" became a catchphrase among business and academic circles, re? ecting people’s fear of the coming global competition. In response to the new market landscape in the mak- ing, Chinese government and enterprises began to study WTO regulations and laws. China’s top leaders including President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji gave lectures to provincial governors on WTO-related topics.     

Caution Needed When Analyzing China's Economic Trajectory

正How can one assess China’s economic new normal in the midst of the global economy’s mediocre performance?The market is torn on the issue,and the conclusions one might arrive to when considering these factors may clash with other people’s perspectives.Following Moody’s revised outlook of China’s government credit ratings from stable to negative on March 2,the inter-     

Voices

正"My current visit to Egypt,on the instructions of President Xi Jinping,is to show China’s i rm support for the Egyptian government and people,and to express China’s sincere desire to deepen mutually benei cial cooperation between China and Egypt,"said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a meeting with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt at the Presidential Palace in Cairo on August 3.Before the talk he conveyed President Xi’s message to President Sisi.Wang Yi added that     

Building onFaith

<正>Ningxia is China’s bridge to the Muslim world with its mosques,halal food and Arab trade tiesTwo years ago,when Abdou Lahad came to Ningxia to study Chinese language and culture on a government scholarship,he had no clue about this autonomous region in northwest China that is home to the Hui ethnic group,China’s largest Muslim group.