BEIJING: Chinese banks saw their bad loans rise in the first quarter due to a slowing economy, but the risks were controllable, the China Banking Regulatory Commission said yesterday.
Guo Ligen, vice chairman of CBRC, told a financial forum that banks’ non-performing loans have been rising as many sectors have been hit by the slowing economy.
The surge in NPLs came as China cut the capacity of oversupplied industries and close “zombie companies,” which survive from bailouts.
By the end of the first quarter, outstanding loans to five severely oversupplied industries rose 0.1 percent annually, Guo said. He said the overall risk of the banking industry was “under control.”
