A worker operates at a Chongqing Honggang Numerical Control Machine Tool Co., Ltd. workshop in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Feb. 22, 2025. (Photo/Xinhua)
Chongqing - Chongqing recorded 415.3 billion yuan (approx. $57.83 billion) in aggregate financing to the real economy in the first half of 2025, providing strong liquidity to support local economic activity.
According to Wei Haibin, Deputy Director of the Chongqing Municipal Branch of the People’s Bank of China, who spoke at a press conference in the city on July 30, the figure marks a year-on-year increase of 28.1 billion yuan.
Wei Haibin, Deputy Director of the Chongqing Branch of the People's Bank of China, second from left, speaks at a press conference held in Chongqing on July 30, 2025. (Photo/Tan Xinyu)
As of the end of June, Chongqing’s total loan balance reached 6.25 trillion yuan, marking an 8.3% year-on-year increase—1.2 percentage points higher than the national average. The city’s loan growth has outpaced the national rate for four consecutive months.
According to Wei, over 4 billion yuan in medium- and long-term loanable funds were released in the first half of the year, along with 64.3 billion yuan in various central bank funding.
Financing costs in Chongqing also saw a steady decline, easing the financial burden on both businesses and households.
In the first six months, the average interest rates for newly issued corporate and residential housing loans stood at 3.3% and 3.2% respectively—down 43 and 61 basis points compared to the same period last year. These rate cuts are expected to save enterprises and individual borrowers approximately 1.8 billion yuan and 1.5 billion yuan annually in interest payments.
Meanwhile, the credit structure continues to improve, with increased support directed toward key sectors such as technological innovation, green finance, consumption, foreign trade, and private enterprises.
By the end of June, the loan balance for technological innovation and industrial upgrading had more than quadrupled from the end of the previous year. Medium- and long-term loans for manufacturing and general consumption rose by 12% and 17% year-on-year, both well above the city’s overall loan growth rate. Notably, loans to private enterprises surpassed 600 billion yuan for the first time, reflecting a 13.3% annual increase.
To promote employment, Chongqing has broadened its employment stabilization loan program—aimed at helping businesses preserve jobs and maintain workforce stability—to include not only small and micro enterprises but also small business owners and individual business operators. By the end of June, these loans totaled 53 billion yuan, supporting over 600,000 jobs.
In cross-border financial services, the cross-border payment connect service was officially launched on June 22, linking the mainland's Internet Banking Payment System and Hong Kong's Faster Payment System to enable real-time cross-border payments between the mainland and Hong Kong. Since its launch, Chongqing has processed remittances totaling 51.26 million yuan, significantly facilitating people and business exchanges between Chongqing and Hong Kong.