China will not withdraw monetary support prematurely: PBOC governor

China's monetary policy will stay steady in support of economic growth, Yi Gang, governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), said at the World Economic Forum's Davos Agenda virtual meeting on Tuesday.

"We will ensure our policies are consistent and stable, and we will not exit from supporting policy prematurely," Yi said.

China's 2021 economic growth will more or less reside in the pre-COVID normal growth range, the governor estimated.

China has rolled out a raft of measures to bolster the epidemic-hit economy. The PBOC injected more than 9 trillion yuan ($1.5 trillion) liquidity into the market last year, along with launching targeted policies in support of micro-, small and medium-sized businesses, Yi said, adding that the monetarycondition is "pretty sound" by the end of the year.

Yi said China's macro policies will focus on maximizing employment, as a stable job market will help drive consumption.

The governor said that China's monetary policy will continue to prop upthe economy, while at the same time watch out for the risks. He referred to risks including an increase in China's macro leverage ratio, growth in non-performing loans, and external risks of capital flow.

China will keep its macroeconomic policies consistent, stable and sustainable in 2021, the Central Economic Work Conference announced last December, with a prudent monetary policy that is flexible, precise, reasonable and moderate, the tone-setting conference added.

China's economy expanded by 2.3 percent in 2020. The International Monetary Fund projected the country's growth to rebound to 8.1 percent in 2021.

(CGTN)