Beijing
People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said the nation’s expected 6.5 per cent growth target for this year is “within reach” and financial risks are well under control.
China is fully confident of preventing and eliminating systemic risks, and will keep pursuing a prudent and neutral monetary policy, the central banker said in a statement dated April 22 on the International Monetary Fund’s website during his Washington D.C. meeting with the IMF committee. The country will keep applying a “full range” of monetary policy tools to keep liquidity broadly stable and to guide market interest rates in a reasonable manner, Zhou said in the statement, adding to a reiterated pledge on active fiscal policy.
Zhou’s statement struck a positive tone, saying that the nation’s corporate and financial risks are in check and economic growth resilient. Figures released on April 17 showed China’s economy accelerated for a second-straight quarter as investment picked up, retail sales rebounded and factory output strengthened amid robust credit growth and further strength in property markets.
China will further improve its macro-prudential policy framework, a system it has used to gauge risks to the financial system, to address potential systemic risks, Zhou said. China will continue to encourage de-leveraging and preventing asset bubbles, while excess capacity in the coal, steel and other industries will be tackled, Zhou added.
Earlier also in the IMF meeting, Finance Minister Xiao Jie voiced similar confidence about reaching the growth target based on the current economic situation, according to a statement on the ministry’s website.
