Bankers nationwide are rushing to call loans issued to state-owned and private companies to avoid a rising tide of debt dodging that’s not only legal but often supported by the government, according to Caixin. Some companies in the past year have frustrated creditors by declaring bankruptcy, while companies in the steel manufacturing and coal mining industries have used asset restructuring projects to avoid debt obligations. Bankers are struggling to cope as bad debts mount. The total value of loans in default reported by the nation’s banks at the end of 2015 surged nearly 48% year-on-year to RMB 1.19 trillion. The overall default rate for China’s banks rose about a half-percentage point during that period to 1.8%.
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