Wen Bin, chief analyst with China Minsheng Bank. [Photo/chinanews.com]
For next year, the Central Economic Work Conference said China will keep its macro policies consistent, stable and sustainable, with continued implementation of a proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy.
"There's still plenty of room for next year's monetary policy," Wen said, adding that to ensure a stable macro leverage ratio, the growth of M2 and social financing should basically match with that of GDP.
At present, China's economic growth expectations are optimistic, at least for the first half of next year, Wen said. If inflation doesn't rise again, there is high probability that the central bank will maintain the medium-term lending facility rate unchanged. However, the possibility that banks provide a discount cannot be ruled out.
Xu Gao, chief economist at BOC International (China).
It is appropriate to add boosting domestic demand as a policy priority amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which will work hand in hand with supply-side reforms to ensure steady economic development despite prolonged uncertainties.
"Apart from the supply-side structural reform, the meeting called for the expansion of domestic demand. The latter is particularly crucial after COVID-19 hammered global demand, which was already under heavy pressure even before the pandemic," Xu said.
Demand-side policies such as maintaining the consistency of macro policy and narrowing the income gap will help expand domestic demand, while supply-side measures such as boosting the supply of healthcare and education services will meet growing demand and translate it into new growth momentum, Xu said.
