China's yuan loans grow 9.11 trln yuan in first five months

 China's yuan-denominated loans rose by 9.11 trillion yuan (about 1.34 trillion U.S. dollars) in the first five months of 2026, central bank data showed on Friday.

At the end of May, outstanding yuan loans stood at 281.02 trillion yuan, up 5.5 percent year on year, according to the People's Bank of China.

The M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased by 8.6 percent year on year to 353.67 trillion yuan by the end of last month.

The M1, which covers cash in circulation, demand deposits and client reserves of non-bank payment institutions, reached 114.89 trillion yuan at the end of May, up 5.5 percent from the same period of last year.

Friday's data also revealed that outstanding aggregate financing for the real economy stood at 458.81 trillion yuan at the end of last month, an increase of 7.7 percent year on year.

Aggregate financing for the real economy amounted to 17.48 trillion yuan in the January-May period, 1.16 trillion yuan less than in the same period of 2025.

Yuan deposits rose by 15.77 trillion yuan during this five-month period, with outstanding yuan deposits increasing 8.7 percent year on year to 344.45 trillion yuan by the end of May, while outstanding foreign currency deposits rose 17.5 percent year on year.

China will continue to apply an appropriately accommodative monetary policy in 2026, this year's government work report noted. ■