China cuts 2008 bank lending growth target

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SHANGHAI, Dec 27 (AFP): China's central bank has set a lower target for loan growth rate of 12 per cent for 2008 in efforts to curb lending growth and cool the economy, state media reported today.
Lending growth would be strictly controlled and branches required to report new loans monthly, the Shanghai Securities News reported, citing a source with a major state-owned bank.
The lending growth target for this year was 15 per cent.
But that has already been overshot with new yuan loans totalling 3.58 trillion yuan from January to November, up nearly 21 per cent from the same period a year earlier.
China is attempting to curb lending growth and investment spending as part of broader efforts to cool an economy that is likely to expand by about 11.5 per cent in 2007, marking the fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth.