China sees more inclusive finance loans in Q1 despite COVID-19

VCG

China's RMB inclusive finance loans increased by 1.03 trillion yuan (about 145.47 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of the year, a year-on-year increase of 313.5 billion yuan, despite the hit by COVID-19, said a report released by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) on Friday.

During the first three months, the outstanding loans surged by 17.7 percent year on year to 18.33 trillion yuan, with the growing pace accelerating by 0.6 percentage points from the end of 2019, according to the report.

China has rolled out a slew of monetary and fiscal policies to support the country's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are hit hardest by the pandemic.

Outstanding loans issued to small businesses stood at 12.41 trillion yuan by the end of the first quarter, up by 23.6 percent year on year.

The PBOC in March announced a targeted reserve requirement ratio (RRR) cut of 100 basis points to bolster the real economy, especially SMEs, freeing up 550 billion yuan of long-term funds. Also, in early April, the PBOC said it will cut the RRR for small and medium-sized banks by 100 basis points in two phases, each for 50 basis points.

Meanwhile, balance of loans to farmers' production rose by 6.9 percent to 5.54 trillion yuan by the end of March, while that of venture guarantee loans surged by 33.9 percent to 151.6 billion yuan.

Inclusive finance lendings include loans to micro, small and private businesses, farmers' production and people living in poverty, as well as student loans and venture guarantee loans, the report noted.