MNI BRIEF: China To Accelerate Special Bond Sales: Official

China will accelerate the sales of local government special bonds in the second half of the year, exceeding the scale seen in H2 2020, so to stabilize infrastructure investment growth, said Lv Wenbin, deputy director of the Investment Department of the National Development and Reform Commission at a briefing on Wednesday.

The NDRC will push local governments to have projects shovel-ready and kick off construction as soon as special bonds are issued, said Lv, adding that they should also look for early issuance and use of special bonds next year to ensure substantial work. Though recent floods and sporadic Covid-19 outbreaks have affected investment gains, it has still been able to maintain stable growth, said Lv.

Meanwhile, the NDRC will further reduce the so-called negative list that bars areas for foreign investment, said Liu Xiaonan, head of the NDRC Foreign Investment Department, who expects the amount of foreign investment used throughout the year to rise more than expected due to China's controlled epidemic situation and sound economic performance.