China will issue policies to further....>

CHINA PRESS: China will issue policies to further encourage private companies to

participate in public-private partnerships (PPPs), Economic Information Daily

reported Wednesday.

- Private companies' share in PPPs continues to increase, with their number

currently comprising 50.2% of the total, and accounting for 36.9% of the total

investment, the newspaper said, citing data from Ministry of Finance; 

- Some local governments, including Henan Province, allow their shares of

certain PPP projects to be transferred to private companies; 

- The Chinese government will continue to control financial risks caused by some

PPPs, which are used as a disguised financing tool for local governments. At the

same time the government will support its advancement, the newspaper said. 

***Comments: The Chinese government's "cleaning up" of PPPs is a measure to

control local government debt risks. Such disguised financing tools add

invisible debt at the local level as local governments are only allowed to

finance through bond issuance.