PBOC: SOE reforms losing momentum

People's Bank of China governor Zhou Xiaochuan said the drive to reform state-owned enterprises had lost momentum, suggesting that profitable SOEs be required to pay dividends, Reuters reported. A dividend stream would provide the government with cash to help fund pension and social liabilities, thus giving households the confidence to save less and spend more, according to the International Monetary Fund. Zhou said China's three biggest state-owned commercial banks should pay dividends to their main shareholder, Central Huijin Investment, an arm of the central bank.