Reuters reports that data released by the People’s Bank of China showed that new bank lending in China fell sharply in October, but not quite as badly as forecast by analysts.
Banks extended new loans of 826.2 billion yuan ($129.27 billion) in October, down sharply from 1.66 trillion in September but better than the 800 billion expected of analysts. The new loans were higher than 689.8 billion yuan a year earlier.
“There are some signs that PBOC policy is turning more supportive in response to strains in the property sector. As such, we think this might be the trough in credit growth,” Capital Economics said in a note.
Last month, central bank Governor Yi Gang said growth of China’s money supply and total social financing were largely in line with nominal GDP growth, and liquidity was ample.
The PBOC is likely to move cautiously on loosening monetary policy to bolster the economy, as slowing economic growth and soaring factory inflation fuel concerns over stagflation, policy sources and analysts said.