Guo Shuqing, chairman of China Banking Regulatory Commission, takes questions on the sidelines of the national legislature annual session in Beijing on Mar 8, 2017.[Photo/VCG]

Head of banking regulatory body confident of credit flowing to real economy

By Dai Tian 

All banking risks can be taken care of to ensure credit continues to flow to real economy, said Guo Shuqing, chairman of China Banking Regulatory Commission, on the sideline of the national legislature annual session on Wednesday.

The problems faced by the sector are inevitable given the sheer size of the country's banking system, said Guo.

"Our banking sector has grown enormously since the reform and opening-up. The asset scale totals $3.3 trillion, surpassing Europe, United States and Japan," said Guo.

Chinese banks extended 2 trillion yuan ($295 billion) new yuan loans in January, doubling from what was recorded a month earlier, according to central bank data. Mortgages accounted for less than one third of the total, registering 14 percent lower than last year.