China's central bank pledges stronger credit support for enterprises in H2

BEIJING - China vowed to maintain sufficient liquidity and step up credit support to enterprises in the second half of the year, as part of efforts to consolidate the growth momentum of its economy, the country's central bank said.

China will guide financial institutions to issue more loans to the real economy, steadily lower real interest rates and leverage financial tools to support infrastructure building, the People's Bank of China said in a statement released Monday, after a work meeting for the second half of the year.

Overseas entities will be given support to issue panda bonds, and the pilot of the digital yuan will be expanded in an orderly manner, according to the meeting.

The central bank also stressed the importance of prudently defusing financial risks in key areas, calling for efforts to prevent and resolve risks of small and medium-sized banks.

China will work to ensure steady financing channels for the real estate sector and accelerate the exploration of new development models of the sector, the central bank said.

It also urged platform enterprises to address any problems they have, and fully leverage their role in creating jobs and promoting consumption.