Confidence boost for first-quarter growth

PBOC surveys of entrepreneurs, bankers paint positive outlooks

China's entrepreneurs and bankers are showing strong confidence on economic growth in the first quarter, based on rebounding market demand and a stronger need for credit, which may fuel inflation in coming months, according to two separate reports from the country's central bank released on Tuesday.

An index gauging entrepreneurs' confidence on macroeconomic development has been boosted to 68 percent in the first quarter from 60.4 percent in the previous three months, compared with 59.2 in the third quarter of 2012, said the People's Bank of China.