MNI China Daily Summary: Thursday, October 27

LIQUIDITY: The People's Bank of China (PBOC) on Thursday injected CNY240 billion via 7-day reverse repos with the rates unchanged at 2.00%. The operation led to a net injection of CNY238 billion after offsetting the maturity of CNY2 billion reverse repos today, according to Wind Information. The operation aims to keep month-end liquidity stable, the PBOC said on its website.

RATES: The seven-day weighted average interbank repo rate for depository institutions (DR007) increased to 2.0229% from 2.0226% on Wednesday, Wind Information showed. The overnight repo average decreased to 1.7297% from the previous 1.7761%.

YUAN: The currency weakened to 7.2081 against the dollar from 7.1825 on Wednesday. The PBOC set the dollar-yuan central parity rate lower at 7.1570, compared with 7.1638 set on Wednesday.

BONDS: The yield on 10-year China Government Bonds was last at 2.6970%, down from Wednesday's close of 2.7050%, according to Wind Information.

STOCKS: The Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.55% to 2,982.90, while the CSI300 index lost 0.70% to 3,631.14. The Hang Seng Index gained 0.72% to 15,427.94.

FROM THE PRESS: The sharp rise in the yuan against the U.S. dollar retraced some of the currency's excessive depreciation this week, helped by a fall in the U.S. Dollar Index, the 21st Century Business Herald reported after both the onshore and offshore yuan strengthened over 1,000 points on Wednesday. Many asset management institutions view the yuan as undervalued against the dollar, which had rallied on expectations the Federal Reserve would continue to hike rates but have now been questioned by weak U.S. economic data, the newspaper said. The yuan will continue to fluctuate in a wide range amid changing expectations, the newspaper said citing analysts.

China should focus on returning economic growth back to pre-pandemic levels in the next five years and keep growth within a reasonable range to avoid economic and financial risks, China Newsweek reported citing Yang Weimin, deputy director of the Economic Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. China’s GDP grew at an average annual rate of 6.6% from 2013 to 2021, while the average growth in the past two years was 5.1%, nearly 1 percentage point lower than the pre-pandemic level, Yang was cited as saying. Yang noted that a growth rate matching the country’s potential growth rate of around 5.5% is a reasonable growth.

Some private property developers are expected to receive a second round of credit enhancement to support continued debt issuance, the China Securities Journal reported. Some non-leading private developers are working with China Bond Insurance Co Ltd, indicating that regulatory authorities are expanding the scope of financing support, the newspaper said citing Liu Shui, a research head at the China Index Academy. A peak in debt repayments is coming with the maturing of bonds issued by 200 core developers reaching CNY181.2 billion in Q4, among which overseas debt accounts for about CNY61.7 billion, the newspaper said citing data from China Real Estate Information Corporation.