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July 13 (Reuters) - Qingdao city in China's debt-laden Shandong province has set up a company to bail out its cash-strapped local government financing vehicles (LGFVs), sources said, as regional governments rush to reduce debt risks in a wobbly economy. The government of Qingdao and the China Development Bank did not reply to Reuters' requests for comment. While no LGFV in China has defaulted in the public markets, cases of delinquencies in the private debt market are increasing, worrying Beijing. Tianjin LGFV bonds yield more than 514 bps over government bonds, compared with 200 bps for Shandong bonds, reflecting the elevated risks. Fund manager Zhou said although he is bullish on LGFV bonds, "the first priority is to be absolutely diversified in investment.

Persons: Qingdao's, Xi Jinping, LGFVs, Goldman Sachs, Zhai Jianye, Zhai, It's, Zhou Tingzuo, Ning Yong, Zhou, Samuel Shen, Jason Xue, Tom Westbrook, Vidya Ranganathan Organizations: Dongdin Industrial Group, China Development Bank, Southwest Securities, Agricultural Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Commercial Bank of China, SS, Shoupu Fund Management Co, Ning Yong Fu Fund Management, Thomson Locations: Qingdao, China's, Shandong, China, Shandong LGFVs, Beijing, Big, Jinan, Weifang, Liaoning, Hunan, Shanghai, Tianjin, Singapore

SINGAPORE, July 11 (Reuters) - Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings (TEM.UL) on Tuesday posted a 5.2% drop in its net portfolio value to S$382 billion ($284.65 billion) in the financial year that ended in March. The drop in net portfolio value is its first since the 2019 financial year and came amid intensified global market volatility. Over the last decade, Temasek has grown its net portfolio value by 77.7% to S$382 billion from S$215 billion in 2013. Its portfolio value hit a record high of S$403 billion in the year ending in March 2022. Most of China's tech companies share prices have rallied since Friday on the hope that strict regulations that have stymied growth for more than two years would ease.

Persons: Chin Yee, Temasek, Rohit Sipahimalani, it's, Yantoultra Ngui, Xinghui, Robert Birsel Organizations: Temasek Holdings, Ant Group, Temasek, DBS, China Construction Bank, PSA International, Mapletree Investments, Ant, People's Bank of, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, Singapore, China, Asia, Temasek, People's Bank of China

☆ Chinese real estate stocks rise as Beijing extends property support measures
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A crane with the China Vanke logo at a residential construction site in China, on Sept. 28, 2021. Hong Kong-listed real estate stocks saw large gains. However, the CSI 300 Real Estate Index fell 0.44%, paring gains from earlier. Chinese real estate stocks mostly rose after the country announced it will extend two financial policies to support the real estate market until the end of 2024. Xinhua reported that the move is to "guide financial institutions to continue deferring loan payments for real estate enterprises, while propping up financial support for the real estate enterprises to ensure the delivery of housing projects."

Persons: ICBC Organizations: Logan Group, Country Garden Holdings, China Vanke, CSI, China Construction Bank, Bank of, People's Bank of China, Xinhua Locations: China, Hong Kong, Bank of China

The People's Bank of China, which typically issues guidance on dollar deposit rates to state banks, did not immediately comment on the matter. The lenders - Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (601398.SS), , Bank of China (601988.SS), , Agricultural Bank of China (601288.SS), , China Construction Bank (601939.SS), and Bank of Communications (601328.SS), - did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The lower rates could both discourage households from putting savings into higher-yielding dollar deposits and nudge Chinese firms, especially exporters, to settle foreign exchange receipts in yuan. The latest cut in dollar deposit rates was the second in barely a month. Some currency traders also said the cuts in dollar deposit rates would ease pressure on commercial lenders' net interest margin, as banks' dollar deposit rates had risen above lending rates before the recent adjustments.

Persons: Ken Cheung, Banks, PBOC, Winni Zhou, Samuel Shen, Jindong Zhang, Rong Ma, Ryan Woo, John Geddie, Edmund Klamann Organizations: People's Bank of China, Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of Communications, Traders, U.S, Mizuho Bank, Reuters, Thomson Locations: SHANGHAI, BEIJING, China, United States, China's, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo

China's top graft-busting watchdog earlier this year vowed to eliminate ideas of a Western-style "financial elite" and rectify the hedonism of excessive pursuit of "high-end taste". Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) (601398.SS) and China Construction Bank Corp (CCB) (601939.SS) plan to cut some allowances of employees at the banks' headquarters from this year, two sources familiar with the matter said. Domestic rival China International Capital Corp (CICC) (3908.HK) last month cut this year's bonuses for investment bankers by 30%-50% from a year earlier, Reuters has reported, citing sources with knowledge of the matter. Besides anti-corruption crackdown and "common prosperity" drive, financial firms are also reining in the flashy lifestyle of their staff to make sure they are not violating the Communist Party's ideology, said industry officials. China's securities regulator and the central bank cut the budget allocation for employee salaries in 2023, following reforms ordered as part of a broader drive to reduce income disparity, Reuters reported last month.

Persons: Xi Jinping's, CCB, Xin Sun, Sun, Xie Yu, Julie Zhu, Selena Li, Ziyi Tang, Binbin Huang, Rong Ma, Sumeet Chatterjee, Lincoln Organizations: Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank Corp, Securities, Reuters, China International Capital Corp, HK, Party, King's College London, Thomson Locations: China, HONG KONG, Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai

☆ China's biggest state banks cut deposit rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, June 8 (Reuters) - China's biggest banks on Thursday said they have lowered interest rates on yuan deposits, in actions that could ease pressure on profit margins and reduce lending costs, providing some relief for the financial sector and wider economy. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (601398.SS), Agricultural Bank of China Ltd (601288.SS), Bank of China Ltd (601988.SS) and China Construction Bank Corp (601939.SS) all cut their rates from Thursday, websites from each bank showed. The state-backed banks cut rates on demand deposits by 5 basis points and three-year and five-year time deposits by 15 basis points. China cut the RRR in March but has kept its benchmark lending rate unchanged this year, as widening yield differentials with the United States limited the scope for substantial monetary easing. Major state banks' net interest margins have shrunk following pressure to lower borrowing cost for individuals and businesses to stimulate the economy, and as credit demand remains subdued.

Persons: Gary Ng, Ng, Christopher Cushing, Sam Holmes Organizations: Industrial, Commercial Bank of China Ltd, Agricultural Bank of China Ltd, Bank of China Ltd, China Construction Bank Corp, Asia Pacific, United, People's Bank of China, CSI Banks, Beijing, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, Asia, United States

☆ BlackRock's China head Tang leaving the company
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, June 6 (Reuters) - BlackRock Inc's (BLK.N) head of China business, Tony Tang, is leaving the asset manager, the company said on Tuesday, after having played a key role in expanding operations in the world's second-largest economy. Susan Chan, BlackRock's deputy head of Asia Pacific and head of Greater China, is now directly overseeing its China onshore business, the company said. "China represents a significant opportunity for BlackRock to contribute to the financial futures of a new generation of investors," the company said. Tang, a former Chinese securities regulatory official, started as BlackRock's China business head in 2019, and has been one of the top aides to CEO Larry Fink. During Tang's tenure as China head, BlackRock established a wholly-owned China fund management unit and a joint venture with China Construction Bank and Temasek offering wealth management services to Chinese investors.

Persons: Tony Tang, Tang, Susan Chan, BlackRock's, Chan, Larry Fink, Selena Li, Kim Coghill, Edmund Klamann Organizations: BlackRock, Asia Pacific, China Construction Bank, Temasek, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Greater China, New York

☆ China names head of NFRA as financial industry faces greater scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —China has appointed the head of its powerful new financial watchdog, which was created as part of sweeping reforms aimed at reining in the $60 trillion industry. Currently, several provincial leaders had previous careers in the financial industry, including Wu Qing, vice mayor of Shanghai and formerly the chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange. China’s sprawling financial industry is coming under closer scrutiny as Xi and his key allies have asserted greater direct control over financial policy. For years, Xi has said the financial industry should better serve the real economy, including making money available to businesses that need it. To further consolidate control, according to analysts, the top anti-graft body has carried out a sweeping anti-corruption campaign in the financial industry, which has ensnared more than a dozen senior executives from state-owned financial institutions.

HONG KONG, May 10 (Reuters) - China will appoint Li Yunze as the head of a new financial regulator as part of a broader restructuring of its financial regulatory regime, three sources with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. Li, 52, a banking veteran and currently vice governor of southwestern Sichuan province, will take the helm of the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA), the sources told Reuters. The NFRA is a new government body under the State Council tasked to supervise the multi-trillion dollar financial industry, excluding the securities sector. Li has a relatively low-profile in the sector compared to previous financial regulatory heads. In 2018, he was appointed as vice governor of Sichuan province.

[1/3] People walk past a branch of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) in Beijing, China April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florence LoSummarySummary Companies Top five lenders post shrinking net marginsNon-performing loans hold steady at all fiveQ1 net profit growth mostly flatSHANGHAI/BEIJING, April 28 (Reuters) - Five of China's largest lenders posted shrinking margins in the first quarter on Friday, as loan re-pricing bites. Following suit were Agricultural Bank of China Ltd (AgBank) (601288.SS), Bank of China (BoC) (601988.SS), China's Bank of Communications Co Ltd (BoCom) (601328.SS), and China Construction Bank Corp (CCB)(601939.SS), all posting dips in their NIM. All lenders posted flat to around 5% net profit growth with BoCom logging the highest first-quarter net profit at over 5%. AgBank came in second with 1.75% as the others posted flat net profit growth over the same period.

SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE, April 28 (Reuters) - Chinese banks are ramping up efforts to promote international use of the yuan, and reporting a surge in cross-border yuan business from the country's booming trade with Russia and deepening ties with the Middle East. Harbin Bank Co (6138.HK), in China's Heilongjiang province neighboring Russia, saw its cross-border yuan business grow nine-fold last year to a record, as the Sino-Russia trade grew briskly after the Ukraine war began. Industrial Bank Co (601166.SS), whose cross-border, corporate payment business jumped 50% last year, has also been actively promoting CIPS, China's own global payment system. The bank said it currently helps 153 foreign and Chinese banks connect to CIPS, to advance China's yuan internationalisation strategy. "Increasing the use of yuan in pricing, and settling cross-border oil and gas trade will give a boost to yuan internationalization."

☆ Chinese lenders focus on risk management amid global banking crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, April 3 (Reuters) - China's top lenders should enhance risk management practices and be more sensitive to macroeconomic fluctuations, senior Chinese banking officials said, in response to a global banking sector crisis that has roiled financial markets. The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) suggests banks should strictly abide by the regulatory requirements and measures of risk management, Xie Xiaoxue, from China Construction Bank Corp's (CCB) credit management department, said. "China's commercial banks should constantly improve the organisational structure of risk management and strengthen risk governance with sound and prudent measures," Xie wrote. Executives at China's big five banks said during annual results last week the lenders have limited exposure to the banking crisis. Xie said that Chinese banks should fully use stress tests and other tools to measure the impact of economic fluctuations and the changes in market participants' financial situations.

REUTERS/Florence Lo/File PhotoSummarySummary Companies Five big lenders post over 3.5% annual net profit growthNet interest margin shrank at all fiveNPL ratios steady or down for all fiveBEIJING, March 30 (Reuters) - China's Big Five lenders posted above 3.5% annual net profit growth this week, but warned that the foundations of the country's recovery were "not yet solid". China's Bank of Communications Co Ltd (BoCom) (601328.SS), and Bank of China (BoC) (601988.SS) both posted just over 5% annual net profit growth on Thursday. Even higher figures came from the Agricultural Bank of China Ltd (601288.SS) (AgBank) on Thursday and China Construction Bank Corp on Wednesday, which both posted over 7% annual net profit growth. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) (601398.SS), , the world's largest listed lender by assets, came in at 3.5% annual net profit growth. NPLsWhile all five lenders posted steady or falling non-performing loan ratios, they also logged shrinking net interest margins (NIM), a key gauge of bank profitability.

☆ Chinese consortium seals highway deal with Bosnia's Serb Republic
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SARAJEVO, Feb 23 (Reuters) - A consortium of Chinese companies and the government of Bosnia's autonomous Serb Republic on Thursday sealed a 350 million marka ($190.5 million) loan deal for the construction of a section of a northern highway connecting the region with Serbia. China Overseas Engineering Group Co Ltd. and China Tiesiju Civil Engineering Group Co Ltd., with help of the China Construction Bank, will plan, build and finance the 17-kilometre-long Brcko-Bijeljina section, Serb Republic Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic said at the signing ceremony. The Serb Republic wants to build a modern highway connecting most of its territory with Serbia, its political ally and largest trade partner. It turned to Chinese investors after the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) declined to support the project, which it said was not vital. In August, the regional government signed a 650 million marka deal with China State Construction Engineering Corp. Ltd. (601668.SS) to build a 33-kilometre-long section of the same highway in northern Bosnia.

CONTAGION RISKTrust firms were dubbed "shadow banks" because of how they operated outside many of the rules that govern commercial banks. Zhongrong International Trust has been working with local governments, including Qingdao provincial authorities, to source early stage deals in intelligent manufacturing, an executive there said. CCB Trust, Zhongrong International Trust and Avic Trust did not respond to requests for comment. Ping An Trust, Zhongrong International Trust, Everbright Xinglong Trust and Minmetals International Trust have all bought project companies from struggling developers in the last few months, corporate records and company announcements showed. Ping An Trust, Zhongrong International Trust, Everbright Xinglong Trust and Minmetals International Trust did not respond to requests for comment.

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI/BEIJING, Dec 2 (Reuters) - China has ordered its top four state-owned banks to issue offshore loans to help developers repay overseas debt, three people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, rolling out its latest support measure for the cash-starved property sector. The regulators have given 'window guidance', or verbal orders that leave no paper trail, to the banks, setting a date of Dec. 10 by which to make the loans secured against domestic assets, two of the sources said. Funds received after the latest step will allow developers to repay offshore loans and dollar bonds in a bid to repair global investors' bruised confidence in the sector, two of the sources said. Each of the four banks, Bank of China (601988.SS), China Construction Bank (601939.SS), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (601398.SS) and Agricultural Bank of China (601288.SS), will pick several developers to fund, the three sources said. The People's Bank of China, the central bank, and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Funds flowing from banks will allow developers to repay offshore loans and dollar bonds, helping to repair global investors' bruised confidence, two of the sources said. Each of the four banks, Bank of China (601988.SS), China Construction Bank (601939.SS), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (601398.SS) and Agricultural Bank of China (601288.SS), will pick several developers to fund, the three sources said. The third source said that, while the big four banks preferred fresh lending to go to state-backed developers, they would have to include some private firms, which have a greater need for offshore loans. Chinese banks make offshore loans secured against domestic assets to companies that need foreign funds, but regulatory tightening in the last couple of years to rein in debt-fuelled empire-building by corporates hampered that kind of lending. China's central bank will also offer cheap loans to financial firms to buy bonds issued by property developers, separate sources have told Reuters.

HONG KONG, Nov 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - President Xi Jinping is wrapping up his massive property stress test, but it looks like few have passed. It was precisely what the now near-collapsed China Evergrande (3333.HK) had asked for back in 2020, before regulators dashed its hopes of listing in the Chinese mainland. Among them is Country Garden (2007.HK), whose U.S. dollar bond that matures in January has rebounded 43% to 96 cents on the dollar this month. In comparison, an Evergrande bond due in January still trades at 5.5 cents. These property bailouts are set to leave most in the sector out in the cold.

☆ Singapore state investor Temasek to open Paris office in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SINGAPORE, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Singaporean state investor Temasek Holdings (TEM.UL) will open an office in Paris next year as it seeks to focus on investments in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region, it said on Tuesday. "Our decision to open a new European office reflects the continuing importance of EMEA as an investment destination," Temasek's EMEA head Uwe Krueger said in a statement. Ranked among the top 10 state investors in the world, Temasek's portfolio value rose to a record S$403 billion ($293 billion) in the year to March 2022. Temasek, which has stakes in large listed Asian companies such as DBS Group (DBSM.SI) and China Construction Bank (601939.SS), is mainly focused on Asia. ($1 = 1.3759 Singapore dollars)Reporting by Yantoultra Ngui; Editing By Anshuman Daga and Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG/BEIJING, Nov 24 (Reuters) - China's biggest commercial banks have pledged at least $162 billion in fresh credit to property developers, bolstering recent regulatory measures to ease a stifling cash crunch in the sector and triggering a rally in property shares. Three state-owned banks lined up around $131 billion worth of credit lines to developers on Thursday, a day after three other lenders committed $31 billion, responding to Beijing's call for support. The massive, coordinated injection of liquidity into the property sector buoyed the shares of major developers on Thursday. PSBC late on Thursday announced that it would provide a total of 280 billion yuan in financing to Country Garden as well as others. China Construction Bank Corp (601939.SS) signed cooperative agreements with eight property developers, including Vanke, Longfor and Midea, financial media outlet Yicai reported.

☆ JP Morgan remains world's biggest systemically important bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - JP Morgan remains the world's most systemically important bank according to the latest rankings from the G20's Financial Stability Board published on Monday. JP Morgan remains in bucket 2 - there is still nobody in the top category with most capital requirements. Within the list, one bank has moved to a higher bucket, Bank of America has moved from bucket 2 to bucket 3," the FSB said in a statement. China Construction Bank and BNP Paribas have moved to a lower bucket. Reporting by Huw Jones; editing by Marc Jones and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China Evergrande says Hong Kong land plot sold by receivers for $637 mln
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, Nov 6 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) said on Sunday its plot of undeveloped land for residential development in Hong Kong's Yuen Long district has been sold by its receivers for $636.94 million. The land project is expected to result in a loss of about $770 million, the Chinese property developer said in a filing to the Hong Kong bourse. The sale proceeds will be used to repay the financial obligations tied to the land plot, it said. Evergrande bought the rural land plot from local developer Henderson Land for $600 million in 2019, and spent around $532 million to convert it into buildable land, according to local media. Saddled with more than $300 billion in total liabilities, the defaulted Chinese property developer has already seen many of its assets, both in mainland China and Hong Kong, seized by creditors.

☆ China's cbank deputy under probe for suspected violations - anticorruption body
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHENZHEN, China, Nov 5 (Reuters) - China's top anti-corruption watchdog said on Saturday it is investigating Fan Yifei, one of six deputy governors of China's central bank, over "suspected serious violations of discipline and law". Fan, 58, has held the deputy governor position since early 2015, before which he had held senior roles with China Construction Bank (601939.SS) and China Investment Corporation. Chinese President Xi Jinping has stepped up efforts in recent years to weed out corrupt Communist Party officials in the financial sector. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) announced the investigation in a statement but did not give any details. In May, the CCDI said it was investigating Sun Guofeng, the former head of the central bank's monetary policy department, for suspected violations.

☆ Evergrande chairman's Hong Kong mansion seized by bank - media report
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, Nov 3 (Reuters) - A mansion belonging to embattled China Evergrande Group's (3333.HK) chairman in Hong Kong's prestigious The Peak residential enclave has been seized by lender China Construction Bank (Asia), local online news outlet HK01 reported on Thursday. The report did not say when the 5,000 square-foot (465 square-metre) mansion, which HK01 said was valued at HK$700 million ($89 million), was taken over by the bank. Evergrande declined to comment on the report and Hui could not immediately be reached. The mansion, with sweeping views of the city's gleaming skyscrapers, had been pledged to raise about HK$300 million to repay an overdue Evergrande bond, HK01 reported last year. ($1 = 7.8498 Hong Kong dollars)Reporting by Clare Jim; Editing by Edmund KlamannOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] People buy food at stalls promoting China's digital yuan, or e-CNY, during the 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing, China September 1, 2022. REUTERS/Tingshu WangHONG KONG/SHANGHAI, Oct 27 (Reuters) - China's digital yuan took the centre stage in the world's largest cross-border central bank digital currency (CBDC) trial to date, a report showed, pointing to how Beijing is speeding up yuan globalization efforts amid rising geopolitical tensions. China's digital currency, or e-CNY, was the most issued, and actively transacted token in the $22 million pilot that used CBDCs to settle cross-border trades, a Bank of International Settlement (BIS) report showed. The PBOC's participation in m-Bridge represents its ambition to eventually promote global, wholesale use of the e-CNY. But China's yuan internationalisation, digital or not, faces challenges amid a slowing economy ravaged by COVID flare-ups, and a property debt crisis.

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