MNI China Press Digest, Aug 19: PBOC, Rate Cut, China-U.S.

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

on Monday:

     The PBOC will focus on increasing the use of structural monetary policy

tools and reducing the financing costs for business in the second half of 2019,

the PBOC-run newspaper Financial News reported. This would include the use of

targeted reserve requirement ratio (RRR) cuts, targeted medium-term lending

facilities (MLFs), refinancing and rediscounting, the newspaper said. The

central bank's latest move to link the loan prime rate (LPR) with the benchmark

lending interest rate is expected to ease the financing pressure on enterprises,

the Financial News report said.

     The PBOC's reform to link the benchmark lending interest rate with the loan

prime rate (LPR) and the medium-term lending facility (MLF) would enable the

central bank to effectively "cut rates" by lowering the rate of MLF, China

National Radio reported. Citing interviews with analysts, the broadcaster noted

market players' concern that a lower lending rate could lead to the narrowing of

banks' interest rate spreads and adversely affect commercial banks. Ma Jun, a

member of the PBOC's Monetary Policy Committee, believes it is hard to say

whether the interest rate spread will decline or by how much it might decline as

it is dependent on lending demand, risk premiums and policy rates.

     U.S. accusations against China of forced technology transfer shows a fear

of China's technological progress, People's Daily said in a commentary. China

welcomes foreign investors and has not set a threshold for technology transfer

in the past and would not do so in the present or future, the Daily said.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has blocked Chinese investors from investing in American

technology firms, has restricted high-tech exports to China and uses state power

to crack down on Chinese tech companies, the newspaper said.

--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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