China money-market rate hits high

The seven-day repurchase rate, China’s benchmark money-market rate for interbank lending, jumped this week as banks prepare for the public holiday and corporate taxes come due, Bloomberg reported. The repurchase rate, a gauge of interbank funding availability, rose 1.09% on Wednesday to 4.74% late in the trading day, the biggest rise since January 2012, according to National Interbank Funding Center statistics. Companies will need to pay between US$64.7 billion (RMB400 million) and US$80.9 billion by the end of the month, said Chen Qi, a UBS Securities strategist. The May 1 Labor Day holiday in China will close markets for three days next week, putting further stress on liquidity.