MNI BRIEF: China To Further Curb Property Bubbles: CBIRC

China's banking regulator will continue to crack down on bubbles in the property market, preventing sharp house price volatility and boost support for the rental housing sector, officials of China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission told reporters Tuesday.

Property bubbles have so far been deterred, as the regulator has kept a control on capital flows into the sector, said Liang Tao, vice chairman of the CBIRC, noting loans to property sector has grown 10.5% y/y as of the end of April, the lowest in eight years, with capital flow into the sector via shadow banking also falling. The leverage ratio has dropped by 3.6 percentage points in Q1 compared with the same period last year, as lenders and insurance companies expanDing at a reasonable pace, said Liang.

The regulator will closely watch for risks in financial institutions, officials said, pointing out that policy will enhance support to small businesses and increase tolerance to related bad loans which will be dealt with positively by lenders.