Nation's economic regulator to study, plan batch of targeted reserve policies

China will likely roll out a raft of pro-growth measures in the third quarter to revive the nation's economic momentum, with a key focus on expanding domestic demand, spurring consumption, stimulating the vitality of the private investment and stabilizing the property sector, experts said on Friday.

They said the country will continuously strengthen countercyclical adjustments and policy reserves to ramp up macro adjustments, such as further reductions in the reserve requirement ratio and interest rate cuts, speeding up local government special bond issuance, and more tax and fee cuts to ease the burden on enterprises.

Their comments came after China's top economic regulator pledged on Friday that it would study and plan a batch of more targeted and stronger reserve policies that can be promptly used when required.

Yuan Da, director of the Department of National Economy at the National Development and Reform Commission, said the country will give more prominence to stabilizing growth and take targeted and forceful measures to implement macroeconomic regulation.

Yuan told a news conference on Friday in Beijing that the country will strengthen policy reserves in areas such as better meeting residents' basic housing needs and their need for housing improvements, as well as expanding effective investment.

"The policy focus will be placed on expanding domestic demand, boosting confidence and preventing and defusing risks," said Liu Dian, an associate researcher at Fudan University's China Institute.

"China also needs to continue to strengthen countercyclical adjustments and step up fiscal and monetary policy support to shore up growth."

Liu said is advisable for policymakers to consider increasing spending on public services, issuing consumer vouchers and boosting transfer payments to local governments, which will help stimulate demand as well as support local consumption and investment.

Ye Yindan, a researcher at the Bank of China Research Institute, said the country will likely introduce a raft of stimulus policies in the third quarter, mainly in key fields such as spurring consumption, boosting confidence in the private sector, and stabilizing the housing market.

During the news conference, Zou Lan, head of the monetary policy department of the People's Bank of China, said the central bank would roll out new policy tools if needed to continuously support key areas and weak links such as inclusive finance, as well as in the green and low-carbon sectors.

Yang Haiping, a researcher at the Institute of Securities and Futures, which is part of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said the central bank could consider new policy tools to support consumption in key fields and among key consumer groups, with the focus being on promoting the transition of the property sector to a new development model.

Zou said the central bank will flexibly use and coordinate policy tools, including reserve requirement ratio cuts, open market operations and medium-term lending facilities and other structural monetary policy tools, to ensure reasonably ample liquidity in the banking system.

Li Chao, chief economist at Zheshang Securities, said the central bank will likely cut the RRR in the third quarter and lower policy rates in the fourth quarter.

On the fiscal front, China is set to speed up the issuance and use of local government special bonds, and more efforts will also be made to ease burdens on enterprises as well as further cut taxes and fees to help industries facing mounting pressures, Li said.

The central bank called on Thursday for efforts to satisfy the reasonable financing needs of private real estate companies, as part of its "all-out efforts" to boost the private economy.

The PBOC will introduce guidance regarding financial support for private enterprises, help local governments address overdue payments to businesses and expand the use of an instrument to support bond financing of private enterprises, Pan Gongsheng, governor of the central bank, said while addressing a symposium with private enterprises.