We will keep tighter rein on debt and shadow banking, Li Keqiang says

Beijing is tightening scrutiny of government debt and the shadow banking system to contain risk, Premier Li Keqiang said yesterday.

He said Beijing had been "highly attentive" to financial and debt risks, and set a timetable for implementing rules to stop banks overexpanding.

"We decided to audit government debt last year, which showed our firm conviction to face the problem," Li said.

In the lending spree in the wake of the 2008-09 global financial meltdown, funds poured into local governments and state-owned enterprises, leading to redundant projects and overcapacity in steel, cement, shipbuilding and other industries.

Local government debt had swollen to 17.9 trillion yuan (HK$22.7 trillion) by the middle of last year, the National Audit Office said at the end of last year. This was nearly 70 per cent more than at the end of 2010, and accounted for 31 per cent of gross domestic product last year.

Li said the debt level was "generally controllable", but the rising trend should not be overlooked. Local debt would be included in budget management and local government financing vehicles would be regulated, he said.

The lending binge from both banks and the shadow banking system has increased China's leverage. Fitch Ratings predicted its credit-to-GDP ratio at the end of 2017 would be close to 250 per cent, compared with 130 per cent in 2008.