Briefly

Reverse repos net 20b yuan, maintain liquidity

The People's Bank of China on Tuesday conducted 7-day, 2.1 percent reverse repos for 20 billion yuan ($3.1 billion) to maintain reasonably stable liquidity in the banking system. A reverse repo is a process in which the central bank purchases securities from commercial banks through bidding, with an agreement to sell them back in the future.

Banks' non-cash payments up

Chinese banks' non-cash payments during the seven-day Spring Festival holiday－Jan 31 to Feb 6－rose 16 percent year-on-year to 14.9 trillion yuan ($2.34 trillion), according to the People's Bank of China, the central bank. Non-cash payments include transactions performed using bank cards, online payment tools, commercial paper, credit transfers and other settlements. Non-cash retail transactions of commercial tenants rose almost 23 percent year-on-year. Catering transactions rose nearly 30 percent year-on-year as demand related to gatherings surged, the PBOC said. Transactions in the transport sector climbed 18.8 percent from the year before, while those for hotel bookings surged 26.9 percent. The central bank will continue to optimize the environment of consumption and payment services, and provide safer and more convenient payment services for the public.

Rental housing project loans redefined

The People's Bank of China and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission on Tuesday said they have excluded loans offered by banking institutions to affordable rental housing projects from the management of real estate loan concentration. Their joint notice on Jan 30 defined the projects that can be deemed affordable rental housing. They had earlier formulated differentiated requirements based on certain factors like asset size and the type of banking entities.

Xinhua - China Daily