China’s largest policy bank to boost infrastructure loans to local governments

THE China Development Bank (CDB) said on Thursday (Sep 22) it will increase the number of infrastructure loans it gives to local governments while prioritising the needs of major economic provinces.

It comes after China’s cabinet was quoted as saying in August it would take more steps to support the world’s second-largest economy, including increasing funding support for infrastructure projects.

The lender has spent 360 billion yuan (S$72.2 billion) to fund more than 800 infrastructure projects, the CDB said in a statement, without giving a timeframe.

“The fund will give priority to supporting infrastructure projects in key areas that can start construction as soon as possible in the third quarter,” said the CDB, the country’s largest policy lender by assets.

As part of the 360 billion yuan, the CDB had spent 2 billion on a railway linking Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport to a village in the southern city of Guangzhou and one billion yuan on a water project in the southern region of Guangxi.

As part of that total, it had also offered 150 billion yuan to fund 421 projects after the last month’s Cabinet meeting.

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At the August meeting, the cabinet said China would unveil 19 new policies to support the economy, including raising the quota on policy financing tools by 300 billion yuan, state media reported at the time. REUTERS