What's next for China's monetary policy?

SHANGHAI/BEIJING: China has begun moving at the margins to withdraw excess cash from the financial system, as a spike in lending in the first few weeks of the year prompted concerns that credit growth was getting out of hand.

The moves, which have included increasing banks' required reserves as well as additional punitive reserve requirements for some lenders, have prompted jitters in global markets as investors worry that tightening in the world's third-largest economy could drag down growth both in China and elsewhere.

Following are some possible next steps the government will take, together with their likely ramifications: