Rural China's farming potential could be unlocked by mortgages

Shanghai

HERE'S one way to unleash the economic potential of rural China: implement reforms that encourage farmers to take out mortgages.

Doing so would offer the nation's near 900 million rural residents a new channel to raise capital to fund innovation and entrepreneurship, according to a report published by the Paulson Institute. That's because land use rights are a main constraint to farmers getting credit - even after major reforms since 2003, according to the report.