Jiang Jianqing, chairman of Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), believes the Chinese economy is reviving as increasing domestic consumption offsets declining exports, the Wall Street Journal reported. Speaking in Hong Kong on Thursday, Jiang pointed to signs of recovery in domestic stock and property markets as evidence of increasing investor confidence. He also downplayed concerns about possible increases in loan defaults, asserting that ICBC’s inventory of non-performing loans has continued to decline since 2005 and that his managers say the credit quality of ICBC borrowers remains stable. Jiang gave the speech a day after ICBC announced a 36% year-on-year rise in net profit for 2008 and Goldman Sachs agreed to hold on to 80% of its stake in the bank until April 2010. Jiang also said ICBC is contemplating more overseas acquisitions.
Categories