MNI China Press Digest, April 15: RRR Cut, Economy, Export

     BEIJING (MNI) - The following lists highlights from China press reports on

Monday:

     The PBOC may not need to cut the reserve requirement ratio in the short

term because liquidity was still abundant in the financial system, according to

a former advisor to China's central bank. China Business News quoted Sheng

Songcheng,a former advisor to the PBOC, who pointed to a strong rebound in the

March money supply and fresh credit data as evidence of liquidity. Sheng also

predicted that policymakers may relax restrictions on shadow banking, noting

that the contraction in off-balance sheet financing by entrusted loans, trust

loans and undiscounted bankers' acceptances had decelerated since last November.

     China is unlikely to carry out stronger stimulus in the short term given

that the economy is showing signs of stabilizing, according to a report in the

Economic Information Daily today. The newspaper says China is still facing

downward pressure and the fundamentals are not good enough for policymakers to

change the loosening bias in policies formulated so far this year. This should

dispel market concerns about possible tightening, the Daily said.

     Chinese manufacturers which are big exporters to the US have accelerated

the move of factories to Vietnam, the 21st Century Business Herald has reported.

Vietnam's tariff-free policy and low tax rate were major attractions for the

Chinese companies, the newspaper said. U.S. retailers in the furniture, home

appliance and tire sector have been shifting their import orders from China to

Vietnam, the Herald said citing trade data company Panjiava. The U.S. has

reduced tire imports from China by 28.6%, while increasing imports from Vietnam

by 141.7%, according to the report.

--MNI Beijing Bureau; +86 (10) 8532-5998; email: wanxia.lin@marketnews.com

--MNI Sydney Bureau; +61 405322399; email: lachlan.colquhoun.ext@marketnews.com

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