Economic Watch: China issues 6.14 trillion yuan in new loans in first two months of 2025

BEIJING, March 14 (Xinhua) -- China issued 6.14 trillion yuan (about 855.89 billion U.S. dollars) in new yuan-denominated loans in the first two months of 2025, central bank data showed on Friday.

At the end of February, outstanding yuan loans amounted to 261.78 trillion yuan, up 7.3 percent year on year, according to the People's Bank of China.

The reasonable growth of new loans indicates the country's moderately loose monetary policy and strong support for the real economy, analysts said.

"The stable and balanced credit growth in the first two months aligns with the financing needs of the real economy," said Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank.

By the end of February, inclusive loans for small businesses increased 12.4 percent, and medium-to-long-term loans for the manufacturing sector increased 10.3 percent, with both figures outpacing overall loan growth.

The M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, had by the end of last month increased by 7 percent year on year to 320.52 trillion yuan.

The M1, which covers cash in circulation, demand deposits and clients' reserves of non-banking payment institutions, stood at 109.44 trillion yuan at the end of February, up 0.1 percent year on year.

The M0, which indicates the amount of cash in circulation, reached 13.28 trillion yuan at the end of February, an increase of 9.7 percent year on year.

In the first two months of this year, China's yuan-denominated deposits increased by 8.74 trillion yuan, with household deposits accounting for 6.13 trillion yuan of this rise.

At the end of February, the total social financing stock in China reached 417.29 trillion yuan, marking an 8.2 percent increase compared to the previous year.

During the first two months, the newly added social financing amounted to 9.29 trillion yuan, representing a 1.32 trillion yuan increase from the corresponding period of the prior year.

With the implementation of proactive and effective macro policies, new industries and growth drivers are expected to develop rapidly. This, in turn, will continuously boost domestic demand and confidence, leading to an increase in financing demand, according to analysts.

The financial sector will provide stronger and more effective support for the high-quality development of the real economy, they added. ■