(Yicai) Sept. 23 -- China's banking and insurance industries have provided CNY170 trillion (USD23.9 trillion) in new funds to the country's real economy through credit, bonds, equity, and other channels in the five years through this year, the period covered by the country's 14th Five-Year Plan.

Key funding areas were supported in a targeted and effective manner over the period, according to a joint announcement by the People's Bank of China, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, the Central Financial Commission, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, released at a conference reviewing the financial sector's achievements yesterday.

Loans for scientific research and technology, medium- and long-term loans for the manufacturing sector, and infrastructure loans saw average annual growth rates of 27 percent, 22 percent, and 10 percent, respectively, noted Li Yunze, director of the NFRA. The outstanding balance of inclusive loans to small and micro enterprises reached CNY36 trillion (USD5 trillion), up 2.3 times from the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, while the average interest rate fell by 2 points, he added.

The total assets of the banking and insurance sectors exceed CNY500 trillion, with an average annual growth rate of 9 percent over the past five years, Li pointed out, adding that this has further solidified China's position as the world's largest credit market and the second-largest insurance market.

Trust, wealth management, and insurance asset management institutions manage nearly CNY100 trillion in assets, doubling in scale compared to the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period, Li said. Of the world's top 1,000 banks, 143 are Chinese, with six in the top 10, Li noted.

China has made significant progress in the opening up of the financial sector, according to Wu Qing, chairman of the CSRC. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the country lifted foreign ownership limits in banking institutions, improved the qualified foreign investor system, and optimized interconnection mechanisms, including the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, and the Shanghai-London Stock Connect, Wu pointed out.

Forty-three of the world's top 50 banks have branches in China, and half of the 40 largest insurers have entered the Chinese market. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, 13 new foreign-controlled securities, fund, and futures institutions were approved to conduct business locally, with foreign investors holding CNY3.4 trillion (USD477.9 billion) in Chinese mainland market capitalization, while 269 firms went public offshore.

Significant achievements have also been made in opening up the foreign exchange sector, with basic convertibility realized under the direct investment category, said Zhu Hexin, deputy governor of the PBOC. Overseas institutions and individuals held more than CNY10 trillion in domestic stocks, bonds, deposits, and loans as of the end of July, he added.

The combined equity and bond financing through the exchange markets reached CNY57.5 trillion over the past five years, Wu pointed out. The proportion of direct funding steadily increased to 31.6 percent from 28.8 percent at the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan, Wu added.

The technological content of the capital market has further improved, with the tech sector accounting for over one-quarter of the total in the mainland market, Wu noted.

China has been systematically mitigating risks in key areas during the 14th Five-Year Plan, said Pan Gongsheng, governor of the PBOC. The number of financing platforms dropped by more than 60 percent as of the end of June from the start of 2023, financial debt has halved, and the reduction in outstanding mortgage loan interest rates has eased the financial burden for over 50 million households by about CNY300 billion (USD42.1 billion) per year, he added.

The conference mainly reviews and summarizes the financial achievements during the 14th Five-Year Plan from a medium- to long-term perspective, and does not involve adjustments to short-term policies, Pan strseed. Regarding the content of financial reforms during the 15th Five-Year Plan and the next steps, further talks will be conducted after unified arrangements are made by the central authorities, he noted.

Editor: Martin Kadiev