China central bank to expand relending scheme to support economy

China's central bank said on Monday it will push forward a pilot scheme on relending in a bid to support the country's farming sector and small firms - the most vulnerable part of the economy. The scheme, which allows banks to refinance high quality credit assets rated by the central bank, was first introduced in Guangdong and Shandong provinces in 2014.
The People's Bank of China relent 4.97 billion yuan ($755.74 million) to 31 institutions from the start of the programme through to the end of 2015. The central bank said it would expand the relending scheme, which has been expanded to 11 provinces and cities to help lower borrowing costs for the real economy.