China tees up fresh spending to boost ailing economy

Beijing: China said Saturday it would issue special bonds to help its sputtering economy, signalling a spending spree to bolster banks, shore up the p...

Beijing: China said Saturday it would issue special bonds to help its sputtering economy, signalling a spending spree to bolster banks, shore up the property market and ease local government debt as part of one of its biggest support packages in years.

The plan is part of a series of actions undertaken by Beijing to draw a line under a years-long property sector crisis and chronically low consumption that has plagued the world's second biggest economy.

Beijing's planned special bonds are aimed at boosting the capital available to banks -- part of a push to get them lending in the hopes of firing up sluggish consumer spending.

China is also preparing to allow local governments to borrow more to fund the acquisition of unused land for development, aimed at pulling the property market out of a prolonged slump.

No figures were provided on the planned special bonds announced at a highly anticipated press conference by Finance Minister Lan Fo'an and other officials, following a series of steps launched in recent weeks that have included interest rate cuts and liquidity for banks.