Money supply rises in May

The growth of money supply in May accelerated to 18.07 percent, up from 16.94 percent in April, while lending growth edged up slightly to 14.9 percent, underscoring challenges policymakers face in battling inflation and excess liquidity.

The annual growth in the broad measure of money supply, or M2, rose 1.13 percentage points higher than in April and 1.33 percentage points higher than the end of last year, according to a statement by central bank yesterday.

"The money supply level shows that ample liquidity remains a problem," said Ma Qing, economist with China Economic Business Monitor, a Beijing-based investment advisory firm.