Earnings reports released Thursday showed that China’s largest banks have begun cutting back on loans made to local governments. Both Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Bank of China (BoC) reported a 27% year-on-year increase in first-half net profit to $12.44 billion and $7.65 billion respectively. BoC also reported that its lending to [...]
The Bank of China (Hong Kong), the Hong Kong unit of the state-controlled BoC, was authorized on Tuesday by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) to serve as an authority by which cross-Strait business transactions could be conducted in renminbi, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). The Bank of China (Hong Kong) office [...]
China plans to have 1,027 banks open in China’s rural areas by 2011, an effort to provide wider access to financial services in the countryside. The announcement came after the China Banking Regulatory Commission said the majority of the 118 rural banks set up since 2006 had become profitable by June 30. China has relied [...]
An advisor to the People’s Bank of China said that lowered expectations of inflation make interest rate hikes in the near future less urgent. Li Daokui said that while the consumer price index rose 3.1% in May, expectations of further consumer price rises are diminishing. “The goal of raising interest rates is to manage inflation [...]
Shares in Bank of China slid in Hong Kong and Shanghai markets yesterday on concerns that a convertible bond issue will dilute shareholders’ stakes. Shares on the Shanghai exchange tumbled 5.1% to RMB3.89 ($0.59), recovering from a 7.6% decline, the steepest drop in nine months. In Hong Kong, stock fell 0.8%. Bank of China is [...]
Bank of China is planning to issue convertible bonds as part of its fund-raising efforts to replenish capital after last year’s lending spree. Bank of China’s president Lieu said the bank also hopes to complete its new H-share issue by the end of this year. The China Securities Regulatory Commission recently granted preliminary approval to [...]
China’s cabinet has approved proposals by the country’s four largest listed banks to raise a combined $42 billion in additional financing from the securities markets, according to the National Business Daily. The decision comes as Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Bank of China and Bank of Communications have unveiled fund-raising plans [...]
Bank of China said it plans to invest $1.1 billion in a railway project linking Shanxi and Shandong provinces. The investment – made by Bank of China’s Hong Kong-based unit, Bank of China Group Investment – will acquire a 14.5% stake in the railway operator, which is soon to be established with $7.6 billion in [...]
Bank of China (3988.HK) posted a first-quarter net profit of $3.84 billion, up 41.2% year-on-year, on the back of aggressive lending. Bank of China’s (601988.SS) loan book expanded by 8.2% during the quarter as Chinese banks extended $380.8 billion in new loans, boosting outstanding loans by 24%. Following the massive $1.4 trillion in new loans [...]
American Express said it will launch renminbi-denominated traveler’s checks next month in partnership with Bank of China. The joint statement by American Express and Bank of China said that the checks will be available in Canada, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the UK and the US, and can be cashed at 2,000 Bank of China [...]
