Debts: China

(asked on 18th May 2020) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 February 2020 to Question 13414 on Debts: China, whether his Department has made a revised assessment of that risk level since the answer was given.


Answered by
John Glen Portrait
John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This question was answered on 27th May 2020

Recent data suggests that Chinese debt increased further in the first quarter of 2020, as the Covid-19 shock is pushing public and private borrowing even higher.

Several institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, raised concerns prior to the Covid-19 outbreak on the risks high levels of Chinese debt could pose to global financial stability. The Covid-19 shock is likely to exacerbate these risks.

In its interim Financial Stability Report published on 7 May 2020, the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee found that major UK banks should remain resilient to the Covid-19 shock to both UK and global economies, including China. HMT will continue to work alongside both the Bank of England and global institutions in monitoring the risks posed by Chinese indebtedness.

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