China's four biggest state-owned banks and the country's nine stock-holding lenders extended more than 302 billion yuan ($45 billion) in combined new loans in September, the official China Securities Journal reported on Tuesday, citing unidentified sources.
The "Big Four" lenders -- Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and China Construction Bank -- increased lending by more than 200 billion yuan ($30 billion) last month, the newspaper reported.
The nine stock-holding banks, including China Merchants Bank and China Minsheng Banking Corp, extended 102 billion yuan in new lending.
China's total lending in September -- including loans from smaller commercial banks -- may reach 500 billion yuan, far exceeding a previous estimate of 280 billion yuan, based on the government's full-year lending target and banks' normal pace of lending, the paper said.
China has raised reserve requirements for six large commercial banks on a temporary basis, a surprise move to drain cash from the economy but avoid over-tightening, four sources told Reuters on Monday.
