GOVT AND POLICIES

PBOC skips reverse repos as liquidity improves

The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, skipped reverse repos on Thursday. "Rising fiscal expenditure near the end of the year keeps the banking system liquidity at a high level," the PBOC said on its website. With 30 billion yuan ($4.3 billion) of reverse repos maturing Thursday, that led to a net withdrawal of 30 billion yuan from the market. A reverse repo is a process in which the central bank purchases securities from commercial banks through bidding, with an agreement to sell them back in the future.

China makes steady progress in fiscal fixes

China has almost addressed all the fiscal irregularities from 2018 identified in an audit report, according to the country's top auditor. Such rectifications involved about 310 billion yuan ($44.33 billion), said Hu Zejun, head of the National Audit Office. Many local governments have rolled out measures to push forward related rectifications, and different departments have enhanced coordination to improve rectification efficiency, Hu said. The NAO would continue to follow up on the rectification progress, Hu said.

Local government bond issuances drop in Nov

China's local governments issued fewer bonds in November, official data showed. The value of local government bonds issued in November totaled 45.789 billion yuan ($6.55 billion), down from 96.46 billion yuan in October, according to the Ministry of Finance. In the first 11 months, local governments issued bonds valued at 4.32 trillion yuan, including 2.55 trillion yuan worth of special-purpose local government bonds aimed at providing financial support for public-interest projects. MOF data also showed outstanding local government debts amounted to 21.33 trillion yuan at the end of November, below the official ceiling of 24.08 trillion yuan set for the year.

Freight train service to Poland commences

A new freight train service has opened linking northwest China's transport hub of Xi'an with Slawkow, Poland, in the hinterland of Europe by way of the Alataw Pass in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. The first train left the station in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province, on Tuesday for the 9,478-km trip, which is expected to take about 10 days. After crossing China's border through the Alataw Pass, the train will pass through Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine to reach Poland. Compared with the traditional shipping route, the rail service takes less time and involves fewer changes in trains during the long journey.

COMPANIES AND MARKETS

Central SOEs report strong profit growth

China's centrally administered State-owned enterprises saw strong profit and revenue growth in the first 11 months of the year, according to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. Despite downward pressure on the economy, the net profits of central SOEs expanded 9 percent year-on-year and their combined operating revenue rose 5 percent during the January-November period, SASAC data showed. The supply-side structural reform of central SOEs has deepened, with a total of 14,000 legal persons removed and the overcapacity-cutting of steel and coal completed, Hao Peng, chief of the SASAC, said at a meeting. During the period, central SOEs' spending on research and development jumped 24.6 percent from a year earlier, with firms in petroleum, steel and automobiles industries notching a year-on-year growth of over 30 percent.

New intercity trains start services in Hunan

A new model of high-speed trains designed for intercity transportation was put into operation on Tuesday in Central China's Hunan province. With a design speed of 160 kph, the CJ6 trains were jointly developed by an intercity railway company in Hunan and CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co Ltd. The new trains are versatile, as they can run in four-car formations during non-rush hours and eight or 16-car formations during rush hours, said Zhou Qinghe, chairman of CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive. Using lightweight materials and equipped with a braking system powered by recycled energy, the new model is also energy-conserving and environmentally friendly, according to Zhou.

AROUND THE WORLD

Budget balance rises to 1% of GDP in Portugal

Portugal's budget balance reached 1 percent of gross domestic product in the first three quarters of 2019, better than the forecast of a government deficit of 0.1 percent for the whole year of 2019, according to the latest data from Portuguese National Institute of Statistics (INE). "In the first three quarters of 2019, the balance of General Government (GG) was positive, corresponding to 1.0 percent of GDP," compared with 0.4 percent in the same period of the previous year, said the INE. The INE pointed out that the GG balance was nil in the year ending in the third quarter.

Belarus cuts oil product shipments by 14.5%

Belarus reduced the export of oil products by 14.5 percent in the period from January to October this year, local media reported. In the first 10 months of 2019, Belarus exported 8.79 million metric tons of oil products, which is 14.5 percent less compared with the same period last year, the country's statistical committee was quoted as saying. Exports of oil products amounted to $4.44 billion, which is 19.7 percent less compared with the first period of 2018, the committee said. In October 2019, oil product exports totaled 750 thousand tons against 950 thousand tons in September and August, 900 thousand tons in July and 680 thousand tons in June.

Saffron output soars to record in Afghanistan

Saffron production in Afghanistan has soared to record levels in 2019, with a 22 percent increase compared to last year, Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock said on Wednesday. "The latest statistics showed that saffron or so-called 'red gold' production increased 22 percent, reaching 19,469 kg this year, which is about 20 metric tons," the ministry said in a statement. The statement added that more than 7,557 hectares of land were for cultivated saffron across the country this year. The country produced 16 tons of saffron last year, according to the statement. Nearly 90 percent of saffron production is exported abroad.

Albania GDP up 3.81% on quarterly basis

In the third quarter of 2019, Albania's gross domestic product increased by 3.81 percent year-on-year, Finance and Economy Minister Anila Denaj said at a news conference. Denaj referred to the latest data published by the National Institute of Statistics. Denaj said that the sector of trade, transport, accommodation and food services was the main contributors to the economic growth. "This sector registered a growth of 6.69 percent and gave a contribution of 1.3 percentage points to the GDP in the third quarter," she said.