Five cities opened to foreign banks

Foreign banks have been cleared to offer RMB services to local enterprises in five more cities, regulators announced. The five cities include Beijing, Kunming and Xiamen, as well as Xi'an and Shenyang, both of which were opened up a year ahead of schedule as a means of boosting economic growth in the cities. The increase brings to 18 the total number of cities where overseas banks can conduct RMB business. According to government figures, foreign banks had set up 204 operational entities in China by the end of October, with total assets of US$66.7bn, up 41% on a year earlier.