Deluge of China bond sales to help economy withstand surging US tariffs

China's credit expanded more than expected in March as the government accelerated bond offerings to help the economy offset the impact of surging US tariffs on Chinese goods.

- BEIJING

BEIJING —

Aggregate financing, a broad measure of credit, rose 5.89 trillion yuan (S$1.06 trillion), according to Bloomberg calculations based on data released by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) on April 13.

That compares with a median forecast of 4.96 trillion yuan by economists in a Bloomberg survey, and an increase of 4.83 trillion yuan in the same month a year ago.

Financial institutions offered 3.64 trillion yuan of new loans in the month, Bloomberg calculations showed. The median forecast was 3 trillion yuan.

Bigger government bond sales were a key driver of aggregate financing in March, as business demand for longer-term credit stayed weak. March is also traditionally a strong month for borrowing because banks tend to extend more credit at the end of each quarter to meet lending targets.