(Bloomberg) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang urged government officials to swiftly carry out key economic tasks for the coming year, after top leaders signaled stronger stimulus for 2025.
Li said ministries must be proactive and act “as early as possible” in executing plans set out at the central economic work conference, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, following a cabinet meeting he chaired on Monday.
Policymakers last week pledged to ramp up economic support next year, including measures to stimulate domestic consumption. China will adopt a “moderately loose” monetary policy — the first shift in stance in about 14 years — along with “more proactive” fiscal tools. This comes as the country is bracing for a possible trade war with the US when Donald Trump takes office.
The State Council, China’s cabinet, also made plans to improve the management of local government special bonds, a key source of infrastructure funding in the past. Regional authorities will have more autonomy and flexibility in using these bonds, with a “negative list” specifying the areas where they can’t be used, according to Xinhua.
Bonds for next year should be issued and utilized effectively to drive construction activity early and support the economy’s recovery, the State Council added. Last week, top leader promised to sell more central and local government bonds to boost growth.
Chinese officials said previously that cash-strapped local governments would be allowed to use funds raised from special bonds to purchase unsold apartments and convert them into public housing. That’s reiterated by the State Council on Monday, though it didn’t provide further details on the scale of the program.
Government purchases of housing inventory is seen as a crucial step to address the persisting housing downturn, but regional authorities have struggled with limited funds and a lack of motivation to take action.
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