MNI Press Digest Feb 5: Liquidity, PBOC, Digital Yuan, BBC

The following lists highlights from Chinese press reports on Friday:

• The PBOC's net injection of CNY96 billion this week through OMOs was restrained and reflected the prioritization of stability, the Securities Times wrote in a front-page article citing industry analysts. The PBOC's tighter-than-usual liquidity operations were due to significant increases in fiscal spending and the need to prevent risks, the newspaper reported citing Wang Tao, a chief economist with UBS. China should expect the gradual normalization of monetary policies after March, as domestic growth continues and global pandemic controls progress, Wang said.
• The PBOC's benchmark rate for deposits will be retained over the long term and serve as a cornerstone, the central bank said in a statement on Thursday. The PBOC urged regional banks to focus on their own operations, warning them not to attract deposits from areas outside their permitted regions, according to the statement. The PBOC will continue controlling unregulated deposit products to maintain market order, it said.
• Launching the digital yuan in China strengthens the regulation of non-bank payment markets and prevents institutions from monopolizing transaction data, the Economic Information Daily said in a front-page editorial. The digital yuan can help counter the decentralized, large-scale trading of cryptocurrencies, which harm China's sovereignty over its currency, the editorial said. The digital yuan will also further expand the scope of current digital payment methods, according to the Daily.
• China's Foreign Ministry says it has demanded an apology from the BBC's Beijing bureau and lodged a "solemn representation" over a report it said recycled claims of China's attempt to cover up the source of the coronavirus outbreak. The report broadcast on Jan. 29 was "typical fake news with ideological bias" that smeared and attacked China, the Ministry said, adding it reserves the right to take further action. Also on Thursday, regulators in the U.K. withdrew the broadcasting license of CGTN, the overseas arm of the official China Central Television, citing that CGTN repeatedly breached impartiality standards with its coverage.