Chinese household borrowing posted a record drop in February, reports Caixin. Household loans fell by RMB 650.7 billion ($94 billion) during the month, the largest contraction on record, according to data released Friday by the People’s Bank of China.
Total social financing (TSF)—a broad measure of credit and liquidity in the economy—increased by RMB2.38 trillion in February, exceeding economists’ average forecast of RMB 1.86 trillion in a Caixin survey. New yuan loans reached RMB 900 billion, slightly below expectations.
The drop in household borrowing was broad-based. Short-term consumer loans fell by RMB 469.3 billion, while medium- to long-term loans, a proxy for mortgages, declined by RMB 181.5 billion.