MNI China Press Digest Jan 13:

Highlights from Chinese press reports on Friday:

China’s economy has momentum towards recovery, but support must be given to boost employment and consumption, Premier Li Keqiang said at a recent symposium. The Premier stressed support to the platform economy, and said tax reductions for SME firms should go ahead as planned. Financial instruments should be used to back major projects, update equipment and boost consumption. Raw material supply chains should be secured, and focus should be made to resume production rapidly after the Chinese New Year holiday. (Source: Yicai.com)

China’s urban surveyed unemployment rate would drop below 5.5% should its GDP manage to reach 5% in 2023, the 21st Century Business Herald reported citing experts. The country still faces a challenge to stabilize employment this year, since new labour market entrants are expected to total 150 million, including 100 million graduates. Policy makers have to make effort to bolster consumption, safeguard companies, particularly state-one ones, and increase flexibility of the labour market, the experts suggested.

China’s regulators have further eased refinancing controls and have allowed more developers to issue new debt in a bid to ensure house delivery, China Business Network reported on Friday. Some developers which were struggling to repay domestic and overseas debt have been approved for bond issuance recently, indicating regulators are expanding the scale of the bailout, analysts pointed out. As a result, the property sector is expected to accelerate debt raising in the first half of the year as all financing channels, including bank credit, bond issuance, as well as equity will be available, analysts noted.