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国家外汇管理局江西省分局2023年度政府信息公开工作年度报告 2024-01-31/jiangxi/2024/0131/2397.html
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2025-01-07https://www.gov.cn/yaowen/liebiao/202501/content_6996509.htm
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2025-01-02https://www.gov.cn/yaowen/liebiao/202412/content_6995610.htm
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The State Council Information Office held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, October 22, 2024 a press conference on foreign exchange receipts and payments data for the first three quarters of 2024. Li Hongyan, Deputy Administrator of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), and Jia Ning, Director General of the Balance of Payments Department of the SAFE, were invited to the conference to brief on the data and answer media questions. The following is the script of the conference. Xing Huina, Deputy Director General of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and Spokesperson of the SCIO: Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference of the SCIO. We are pleased to welcome Ms. Li Hongyan, Deputy Administrator of the SAFE. She will share with us the data on China’s foreign exchange receipts and payments for the first three quarters of 2024 and answer your questions. Also present at today’s press conference is Mr. Jia Ning, Director General of the Balance of Payments Department of the SAFE. Now I will give the floor to Ms. Li. 10:00:42 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan, Deputy Administrator of the SAFE: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to today’s press conference. First, I would like to brief you on China’s foreign exchange receipts and payments situations for the first three quarters of 2024 and then I will take your questions. Since 2024, the global economic and financial situation has been complex and volatile, and geopolitical risks have increased. China has adhered to the general principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability, and stepped up the intensity of macroeconomic policy regulation. The national economy has achieved generally stable growth while making further progress. Cross-border capital flows tended to be balanced, and the foreign exchange market showed a strong resilience, with generally rational and orderly market expectations and transactions. The renminbi exchange rate remained basically stable at a reasonable and balanced level. 10:02:07 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: According to the data on foreign-related receipts and payments by banks for customers in the first three quarters of 2024, in US dollar terms, banks registered USD 5.2594 trillion in foreign-related receipts and USD 5.2566 trillion in foreign-related payments for customers, representing a surplus of USD 2.8 billion; or in renminbi terms, banks handled foreign-related receipts of 37.39 trillion yuan and foreign-related payments of 37.37 trillion yuan for customers, recording a surplus of 18.7 billion yuan. For settlement and sales of foreign exchange by banks, I would like to explain that settlement of foreign exchange means that enterprises or individuals sell foreign exchange to banks, and sales of foreign exchange means that enterprises or individuals buy foreign exchange from banks. In US dollar terms, in the first three quarters, banks settled USD 1.6762 trillion and sold USD 1.7975 trillion of foreign exchange, representing a deficit of USD 121.3 billion. In renminbi terms, banks settled 11.91 trillion yuan and sold 12.78 trillion yuan of foreign exchange, representing a deficit of 864.6 billion yuan. China’s foreign exchange receipts and payments for the first three quarters of 2024 present the following characteristics: First, net inflows of cross-border capital have resumed. In the first three quarters, the settlement and sales of foreign exchange by banks for customers recorded a small surplus, with a slight surplus in the first quarter, a deficit in the second, and a surplus again in the third quarter. In terms of main composition, the net inflow of trade in goods continued, foreign investment in China gradually improved, and the outbound investment of domestic entities was generally conducted in an orderly manner. Second, settlement and sales of foreign exchange by banks tended to be basically balanced. In the first three quarters, the settlement and sales of foreign exchange by banks represented an overall deficit. Specifically, the deficit expanded in the second quarter, and the balanced level resumed in the third quarter, with September seeing a surplus. The settlement of foreign exchange rose and the sales were basically stable. Third, the settlement rate has recently picked up in an orderly manner, and the sales rate has been stable with a slight decline. Enterprises have maintained rational willingness for settlement and sales of foreign exchange. In the first three quarters, the foreign exchange settlement rate, a measure of customers’ willingness to settle foreign exchange, or the ratio of foreign exchange sold by customers to banks to customers' foreign exchange receipts, was 62.1 percent. The foreign exchange sales rate, a measure of customers’ willingness to buy foreign exchange, or the ratio of foreign exchange purchased by customers from banks to foreign exchange payments made by customers, was 68.9 percent. Particularly, the settlement rate for August and September was 66.4 percent, up by 5.7 percentage points from the previous 7 months, and the sales rate for August and September was 66.7 percent, down by 2.8 percentage points from the previous 7 months. The exchange rate expectations of domestic entities were basically stable, and foreign exchange transactions remained rational and orderly. Fourth, the transactions in the foreign exchange market were relatively active. In the first three quarters, the turnover on the domestic renminbi foreign exchange market totaled USD 30.27 trillion, up by 10.1 percent year-on-year. Specifically, the turnovers on the foreign exchange spot and derivatives markets were USD 10.18 trillion and USD 20.09 trillion, respectively, with the turnover on the derivatives market accounting for 66.4 percent of the total, an increase of 3.7 percentage points over the same period of 2023. By the way, I would like to introduce to you that this August, the SAFE released the Guidelines for Enterprise Exchange Rate Risk Management on its official website. Today, we bring these Guidelines here for you to take and read freely. In the Guidelines, we have added new market practices and corporate cases, and some accounting applications for enterprises to conduct hedging for value preservation. I hope that you can help us better publicize them. Fifth, the scale of foreign exchange reserves remained basically stable. Since the beginning of 2024, some of the non-USD currencies have appreciated and some depreciated against the US dollar, and the global asset prices have risen in general. Due to non-trading factors such as foreign exchange rate conversion and changes in asset valuation, China’s foreign exchange reserves have steadily increased. As of the end of September, the balance of foreign exchange reserves was USD 3.3164 trillion, an increase of USD 78.4 billion from the end of 2023. In the next step, the SAFE will thoroughly implement the guiding principles of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and the deployment and requirements of the meeting convened by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on September 26, pay more attention to system integration, lay more emphasis on key points, and focus more on practical achievements of reforms. The SAFE will unswervingly pursue the distinctive path of financial development with Chinese characteristics, concretely and effectively promote reforms and prevent risks in the foreign exchange field, and further enhance support for the real economy. In this way, the SAFE will contribute to a sustained economic recovery. The above are the main statistics on China’s foreign exchange receipts and payments for the first three quarters of 2024 that I want to share with you. Next, I will answer your questions on China’s foreign exchange receipts and payments. Thank you! 10:13:28 10/22/2024 Xing Huina: The floor is now open for questions. Please tell us your news agency before raising your questions. 10:14:13 10/22/2024 Yicai: Since the beginning of this year, foreign holdings of Chinese bonds have constantly presented a net increase, and the recent rise in China’s stock market has also led to an increase in foreign allocation of Chinese stocks. What is the SAFE’s outlook for the future allocation of renminbi-denominated assets by foreign investors? Thank you! 10:16:37 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: Thanks for your question. Steady progress has been made in China’s opening-up of its financial market to the outside world, and the foreign investment in China has been receiving great attention. Let me start by giving you a brief overview of the current situation. Over the recent period, the allocation of renminbi-denominated assets by foreign investors has generally shown good momentum. Since the beginning of 2024, renminbi bonds have always presented a good overall yield and have attracted more allocation by foreign investors. To date, the foreign holdings of renminbi bonds in China have totaled over USD 640 billion, hitting an all-time high. In terms of the composition of the existing holdings, prudent investors such as foreign central banks and commercial banks are the main holding institutions, and medium- and long-term bonds such as treasury bonds and policy-oriented financial bonds account for a larger proportion, resulting in a relatively strong stability of investment. In addition, driven by the rise in the domestic stock market, since the second half of September, the net purchases of Chinese stocks by foreign investors have increased overall, and foreign investors have been even more willing to allocate renminbi-denominated assets. At present, foreign investors are generally still at an initial stage of investing in China’s capital market, and their holdings of renminbi-denominated assets do not have a large scale or share. Investments by foreign investors in China’s stock and bonds markets account for about 3 to 4 percent of the total, and still have room for increase as underpinned by multiple favorable factors. First, China’s economic fundamentals maintain steady and upbeat momentum, offering a good macro-environment. Since the beginning of 2024, China’s high-quality economic development has been advancing in an orderly manner. As a full range of incremental policies have recently been implemented, the positive long-term trajectory of China’s economy will continue to consolidate. Second, China has improved its high-standard opening up, offering a good policy environment. In recent years, China’s financial market has been steadily opening up to the outside world, providing a series of channels for foreign investment, including the Shanghai Stock Connect, the Shenzhen Stock Connect, the Bond Connect, and the CIBM (China’s Inter-bank Bond Market) Direct. These serial institutional arrangements provide diversified investment channels for foreign investors. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee made important arrangements for promoting the high-standard opening up of the financial sector. With more relevant policies being implemented, China’s capital markets are expected to be more attractive to foreign investors. Third, renminbi-denominated assets, with a great effect of diverse allocation for risk diversification, offer a good investment value. China has built a relatively comprehensive and in-depth financial market system, with the second largest bond and stock markets in the world. The value of the renminbi is stable, and renminbi-denominated assets are diverse and renminbi has yield performances relatively independent from the rest of the world. This helps global investors diversify their asset allocation and risks. At the same time, renminbi accounts for a steadily greater proportion in the currencies used in cross-border transactions around the world, and its international influence has gradually increased. It is an important choice for global investors to diversify their asset allocation. On the whole, the allocation of renminbi-denominated assets by foreign investors will help enrich market participants, increase market liquidity, and promote more dynamic and internationalized development of the capital market in China. The SAFE will continue to enhance investment facilitation, create a good environment for investment, bolster the high-standard opening up in the financial sector, and actively support foreign investors to participate in the capital market in China. Thank you! 10:16:52 10/22/2024 21st Century Business Herald: In the first half of this year, the scale of China’s external debt increased as a whole. How does the SAFE view the changes in the scale of external debt? Thank you! 10:25:16 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: Thanks for your question. For this question, I give the floor to Mr. Jia Ning, Director General of the Balance of Payments Department of the SAFE. 10:26:39 10/22/2024 Jia Ning, Director General of the Balance of Payments Department of the SAFE: Thanks for your question. The external debt of a country is a matter of considerable concern both in theory and practice. According to the ways of formation, China’s external debt can be classified into two categories. The first category is formed through overseas financing by enterprises, banks and other sectors. This part of the external debt is an objective result of making full use of the domestic and international markets and two kinds of resources, and is directly related to the development of cross-border trade and investment. The second category is the external debt formed by foreign investors purchasing domestic bonds, reflecting the global investors’ demand for the allocation of renminbi-denominated assets. In recent years, as renminbi has become more attractive to the rest of the world, the second category has become the main channel for the growth of China’s foreign debt. In the first half of 2024, China’s external debt has steadily increased. As of the end of June, the balance of external debt was USD 2.54 trillion, an increase of USD 97.1 billion from the end of 2023. On the one hand, China’s economy has maintained steady development. This, combined with the effects of the increase in the comprehensive yield of renminbi bonds, among others, caused steady allocation of renminbi bonds by foreign investors. The net increase in foreign holdings of renminbi bonds in the first half of the year reached a historical high, driving an increase of nearly USD 90 billion in bond-related external debt, and is the main driver of the recovery of external debt. On the other hand, with rising expectations on the interest rate cut of the US Federal Reserve, enterprises, banks and other entities in China tended to slow down in the pace of servicing their external debt. As a result, financing-related external debt such as deposits, loans and trade credits have stopped falling and picked up, increasing by more than USD 8 billion in the first half of the year. According to preliminary statistics, the scale of external debt was generally stable in the third quarter. China’s external debt is generally moderate in scale, and the risk of debt servicing is relatively low. First, the size of China’s external debt basically matches the actual economic development. In recent years, despite the abrupt changes in the Fed’s monetary policy and the shift between easing and tightening external financial conditions, China’s external debt has been generally on a stable scale, with its ratio to GDP fluctuating slightly in a range of 14-16 percent, and cross-border financing by enterprises has effectively supported the development of the real economy. Second, the risk of serving the external debt is manageable. The four indicators of China’s external debt, namely the debt-to-GDP ratio, debt service ratio, external debt to exports ratio and the ratio of short-term external debt to foreign exchange reserves, are all within the international recognized safety threshold. Third, the structure of China’s external debt has been constantly optimized. At the end of June 2024, the proportions of renminbi external debt and medium- and long-term external debt were 49 percent and 44 percent respectively, up by 13 and 3 percentage points respectively from the end of 2019. The risks of maturity mismatch and currency mismatch for Chinese external debt are manageable and significantly reduced. Looking ahead, China’s external debt is expected to maintain steady development. As China’s economic recovery and growth have been boosted, the opening up of the financial market has been steadily advancing and the functions of renminbi-denominated asset allocation have been constantly manifested, foreign investment in renminbi bonds will continue to grow. At the same time, as China’s potential for outbound trade and investment is constantly unleashed, and the interest rate cut by advanced economies such as the United States and Europe will push the cost of external financing down, the demand for borrowing external debt by enterprises and other sectors will gradually pick up. That’s all for my answer. Thank you! 10:27:05 10/22/2024 Market News International: As the interest rate spreads between China and the United States are narrowing, how will China’s cross-border capital flows and exchange rates be impacted? Does the SAFE worry that fluctuations in the renminbi exchange rate against US dollar will cause exchange losses to exporting enterprises? 10:30:44 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: Monetary policy adjustments in major economies are of common interest, and we are more closely following this issue. In September, the Fed announced a 50-point cut in interest rates, and the austerity policy that has been in place for more than two years began to turn, and the interest rate spreads between China and the United States were adjusted. In the future, there is still uncertainty about the pace and path of the Fed’s interest rate cut, and recent market expectations are constantly adjusting to keep up with the changes in U.S. economic data. In the past, the Fed’s monetary policy adjustments had spillover effects on global financial markets. Although the operation of China’s foreign exchange market has been affected, it has remained stable on the whole, mainly thanks to the support of domestic fundamentals. In the future, China’s economy will maintain high-quality development, its high-standard opening up will continue to advance, and market resilience will be further enhanced. These will provide even more favorable foundation and conditions for stable operation of the country’s foreign exchange market. First, the steady consolidation of China’s economic recovery will help lay a more solid internal foundation for the stable operation of the country’s foreign exchange market. Since the beginning of 2024, China’s economic operation has remained generally stable. The GDP data for the first three quarters released a few days ago showed a growth of 4.8 percent year-on-year, a growth rate at a relatively high level in the world. Recently, China has strengthened the counter-cyclical adjustments of its macro policy and launched a package of incremental policies with intensified efforts. This will continue to boost the economic recovery and growth, improve market expectations and confidence, enhance China’s economic vitality, and promote the steady development of cross-border trade and investment, thus providing a solid foundation for the stability of the foreign exchange market. Second, the building of new systems for a higher-level open economy in China will help enhance the stability of the balance of payments and the operation of the foreign exchange market. As China’s innovation-driven development strategy and advantages over the entire industrial chain will continue to play a role, foreign trade is expected to develop steadily, the current account operation will be promoted in a reasonable and balanced range, and the internal and external balance of the economy will continue to be consolidated. At the same time, as China’s high-level institutional opening-up has been steadily advancing, the channels for cross-border investment have been continuously expanded, transactions have become more facilitated, and the foreign investment in China and the country’s outbound investment have been developing coordinately. These will enable more balanced cross-border capital flows in China. On the whole, the equilibrium and steady operation of the balance of international payments are also conducive to maintaining the basic stability of the renminbi at a reasonable and balanced level. Third, the resilience of China’s foreign exchange market has steadily increased, which will help adapt to and ease the impact of changes in the external environment. At the macro level, in recent years, the market-based renminbi exchange rate regime has been continuously improved, and the renminbi exchange rate is playing an increasingly stronger role as an automatic stabilizer for adjusting the balance of payments. External pressure can be better released in a timely manner. At the micro level, enterprises are better at using foreign exchange derivatives to manage exchange rate risks and are more relying on cross-border renminbi settlement to reduce the risk of currency mismatch. Since the beginning of 2024, the ratio of foreign exchange hedging by enterprises has reached 27 percent, and the proportion of cross-border renminbi use under trade in goods has been 30 percent, both at a historically high level. These positive changes at both macro and micro levels have reduced the impact of fluctuations in the foreign exchange market on enterprises, and helped make market expectations and transactions more rational. As for your concern about the impact of the renminbi exchange rate on China’s export enterprises, both theory and practice show that a country’s exports are subject to a variety of factors, including external demand, domestic manufacturing level, factor cost, and so on. The exchange rate is only one of them. When it comes to China, the foreign trade situation has continued to improve since the beginning of 2024. This is mainly attributable to the enhanced competitiveness of domestic enterprises on the supply side, and the relatively stable global trade on the demand side. From a longer-term perspective, the main driving factors of China’s export growth are also basically the same as above. From the perspective of exchange rate fluctuations, the spot exchange rate of CNY against the US dollar has depreciated slightly by about 0.3 percent since the beginning of this year, remaining relatively stable in two-way fluctuations. Even though there was a significant rebound in the renminbi exchange rate against the US dollar in August and September, it was a common reaction of various non-USD currencies against the weakening of the US dollar. In addition, the appreciation of renminbi was also at an average level globally, with a relatively mild impact on imports and exports. The SAFE has always paid close attention to changes in the situation. As there are still some uncertain and unstable factors in the external environment, the foreign exchange administrative authorities will continue to monitor and evaluate the international economic and financial situation and the monetary policy trends of major developed economies, constantly accumulate and summarize experience in countermeasures, and enrich policy toolkits. It will also carry out counter-cyclical macro prudential adjustments, and effectively maintain the stable operation of the foreign exchange market. Thank you! 10:30:58 10/22/2024 CCTV: How have China’s foreign exchange market and balance of payments been operating since the beginning of this year? What characteristics do you think are presented? Thank you! 10:41:44 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: Thanks for your question. I would like to share with you the current foreign exchange situation. As I mentioned earlier, the external environment has been complex and volatile since 2024, with repeatedly adjusted expectations on the monetary policies of major developed economies. While the international financial market has continued to fluctuate, China’s economy has achieved overall stability while ensuring progress. The overall foreign exchange market in China has withstood the test of changes in external environment and shown strong resilience, with the recent situation stabilizing and improving. As a whole, this can be observed from the following three aspects: First, the renminbi exchange rate remained basically stable in two-way fluctuations. The RMB exchange rate is mainly determined by the market. Under the market-based exchange regime, the two-way fluctuations of renminbi with both appreciation and depreciation are the norm. As I just mentioned, the spot CNY-USD exchange rate has depreciated slightly overall by 0.3 percent since the beginning of this year, with certain declines and rises in some periods, but all in line with the changes in the internal and external environment. At the same time, the performance of renminbi in the global foreign exchange market is relatively robust compared to other currencies. Since the beginning of this year, the US dollar index has risen by 2.3 percent, the euro and the yen have depreciated by 1.7 percent and 5.9 percent against the US dollar respectively, and the emerging market currency index has fallen by 6.3 percent. These show that the renminbi fluctuations are normal and mild. Second, foreign exchange market expectations and transactions remained rational and orderly. According to relevant indicators in the foreign exchange forward and options markets, there has been no significant expectation of appreciation or depreciation of the renminbi exchange rate since the beginning of this year, and overall market transactions have remained rational and orderly. As we all see, the renminbi exchange rate has recently risen and declined, and its flexibility has been enhanced. Enterprises and other entities have chosen the right time for settlement and sales of foreign exchange on the basis of the demands for cross-border trade, investment and financing. The total scale of settlement and sales of foreign exchange in September increased by 14 percent over August. Meanwhile, in recent years, enterprises have been increasingly more aware of exchange rate risk neutrality, and the scale of forward exchange settlement contracts increased month on month in both August and September, indicating that enterprises have been actively adapting to market fluctuations through exchange rate risk management. Third, China’s balance of payments maintained a basic equilibrium overall. The current account continued to show a reasonable scale of surplus. In the first half of this year, China’s current account surplus was USD 93.7 billion, accounting for 1.1 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the same period, and still in a reasonable and balanced range. Specifically, trade in goods has maintained a surplus of a certain scale and continued to play the basic role of stabilizing cross-border capital flows; and the deficit in trade in services has basically returned to the pre-epidemic level. According to preliminary statistics, the current account surplus for the third quarter remained at a reasonable level. In terms of the capital account, cross-border capital flows have recently become more balanced. Foreign investments in China have increased. Foreign investments in China’s bonds have continued the trend of steady inflow, with a cumulative net increase of over USD 80 billion in holdings in the previous three quarters. Recently, foreign investments in China’s stocks have also improved markedly, and the changes in external debt have remained stable. Outbound investments by entities within China have been conducted in an orderly manner, with both direct investments and securities investments showing a steady and sustained growth trend. On the whole, China’s foreign exchange market has become increasingly more mature and resilient, and has been obviously more capable of coping with changes in the external environment, providing strong support for the overall stability of foreign exchange receipts and payments. That’s all for my answer. Thank you! 10:42:36 10/22/2024 Bloomberg: I have two questions today. First, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has raised some questions about the balance of payments statement compiled by the SAFE. In particular, with regard to the calculation of trade, the U.S. Department of Treasury would like to see more information from the SAFE on how it calculates the trade surplus. Will the SAFE plan to provide more details on its calculation method? Second, the Chinese stock market has rebounded recently due to the expectation of stimulus measures. Can the SAFE disclose the details of the recent capital inflows of foreign investors under the capital account? What is the outlook for cross-border capital flows by the end of this year? 10:51:45 10/22/2024 Jia Ning: Thanks for your interest in the balance of payments statistics. The difference between the trade in goods in the balance of payments statement and the customs import and export is not unique to China. It is also a common phenomenon in other economies. This is mainly because the balance of payments and customs statistics follow different international standards. This also suggests that we should first focus on the statistical calibers of the two categories of data. The trade in goods in the balance of payments reflects the transfer of ownership of goods between residents and non-residents. Generally speaking, it is the situation of goods purchase and sales between domestic and foreign enterprises. The customs statistics, however, are on the situation of goods entering and exiting China’s customs border, and do not take into account changes in the ownership of goods. Take the common processing trade as an example, if a foreign enterprise provides all raw materials and commissions a domestic enterprise to process and assemble, and the finished product is owned by the foreign party, the trade will not be included in the balance of payments because the ownership of goods does not change. However, because the goods are in and out of the customs border, the customs include the trade in the statistics of import and export according to the full value of the goods. In particular, as a major global trade and consumer country, China has diverse forms and complex patterns of trade. The purchase and sales of goods are more commonly separated from the cross-border movement of goods in international trade, and the differences between the two types of data are naturally even more obvious. For example, in the context of globalization, an overseas transnational corporation entrusts a domestic enterprise with production and manufacture, and the finished products are sold directly within the country. Since goods always circulate within the country, they are not included in customs statistics, but when goods are sold directly within the country, the ownership of goods has been transferred from the overseas transnational corporation to domestic entities, and therefore the goods should be covered by the import statistics of the trade in goods in the balance of payments. In addition, the pricing principles of the two types of statistics are different. The balance of payments is on the value of goods themselves, excluding the fees for services such as transportation and insurance, while for customs statistics, exports are based on FOB and imports are based on CIF, that is, imports include the fees for transportation and insurance. The above details are elaborated in the newly released China’s Balance of Payments Report for the First Half of 2024 and in previous reports. In order to provide more comprehensive and accurate statistics on trade in goods in the balance of payments, since 2022, the SAFE has used the data directly reported by enterprises, which are more in line with the principles of goods purchase and sales, when compiling the balance of payments statement. All countries compile their balance of payments statements in accordance with the uniform standards of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In the first half of this year, during the IMF Article IV consultations, the IMF believed that the new compilation method for China’s trade in goods solved the practical problems facing China and was more in line with the principle of balance of payments statistics, and fully recognized the method. Recently, at a special session of the China-US Financial Working Group, SAFE and the U.S. Department of the Treasury also had full and effective communication on statistical issues. In the future, the SAFE will continue to track the development and changes of China’s foreign trade, constantly improve the statistical methods, and provide higher quality balance of payments statistics to society. On your second question, Ms. Li also made an answer earlier. On the whole, China’s balance of payments has a solid internal economic foundation and good market conditions. The current account has been developing steadily since the beginning of this year, with the size of two-way transactions increasing and the surplus remaining at a reasonable and balanced level. In terms of the capital account, foreign direct investment has improved recently, and the purchase of bonds and stocks in China by foreign capital under securities investment has been enhanced overall. Therefore, we have the conditions and confidence to believe that China’s cross-border capital flows will remain stable and positive in the coming months of this year and beyond. Thanks for your interest. 10:52:15 10/22/2024 The Cover: What is your comment on the performance of the current account of the balance of payments since this year? What is your judgment on future trends of the current account? Thank you! 10:59:46 10/22/2024 Jia Ning: Thanks for your interest in China’s current account performance. The current account is an important indicator of the balance of the internal and external economy of a country. Since 2024, China has maintained a reasonable scale of current account surplus, indicating that the internal and external balance of the economy has been further consolidated. Just now Ms. Li Hongyan has introduced the proportion of China’s current account surplus to GDP and the main composition of the current account in the first half of this year. In recent years, China has given full play to its comparative advantages in the industrial chain and supply chain, enhanced its foreign trade competitiveness, and promoted the export of productive services. At the same time, relying on the consumption potential of its large markets, China allowed global trading partners to fully share its development opportunities, and this boosted the balanced development of China’s import and export trade. Looking ahead, China’s current account will continue the development trend of expanding scale and basic equilibrium, which will help maintain the stable operation of the balance of payments and the foreign exchange market. First, China’s exports and imports for trade in goods are expected to grow steadily, and its trade surplus will remain relatively stable. From the perspective of exports: On the one hand, the global economy has recovered moderately, and the role of external demand in export promotion has persisted. According to the forecast of the World Trade Organization, global trade growth will be 3 percent next year, up by 0.3 percentage points from this year. At the same time, the stock replenishment cycle of developed economies is not yet over, and the consumer electronics market is expected to remain moderate. All these will support China’s exports. On the other hand, the internal driving force of export development remains strong. China has a relatively complete industrial system, and over the years has been deeply integrated into the global supply chain and value chain. It has richer commodities for trade, a more optimized trade structure, and more diverse trade partners. From the perspective of imports: As the domestic economic operation continues to improve, consumption vitality will be further released, and demand for international commodities will increase simultaneously. At the same time, in recent years, China has adopted a series of policy measures to take the initiative to expand imports. This has opened the door for the world to the Chinese market, and will further increase the scale of imports. On the whole, under the joint effects of both internal and external favorable factors, China’s total import and export of trade in goods will continue to lead the world, and the trade balance will develop in a more balanced direction. Second, the balance of trade in services has a gradually optimized structure and is expected to have a mild trend. In recent years, China has continued to advance the industrial transformation and upgrading and bolster the deep integration of the service and manufacturing industries. The country has seen accelerated development of high-end services such as those for the digital economy and intellectual property rights, and a steady growth of exports in the trade in services. In the first three quarters of 2024, China’s cross-border revenue from the trade in telecommunications, computer and information services and business services totaled USD 123.6 billion, up by 6.8 percent year-on-year. Its revenue from the fees for the use of intellectual property was USD 9.1 billion, up by 5.5 percent year-on-year. Another major component of trade in services is travel. At present, residents’ cross-border travel and overseas study have steadily recovered and basically returned to the pre-epidemic level, and the growth rate will be more moderate in the future. At the same time, since the beginning of this year, China has continuously optimized the services for foreign nationals arriving in China and expanded visa facilitation, bringing about a relatively rapid increase in the revenue from cross-border travel. This revenue is expected to continue to grow and help narrow the travel deficit in the future. Thank you! 11:00:37 10/22/2024 Xing Huina: Please continue to ask questions. I see a reporter raising her hand. 11:03:13 10/22/2024 National Business Daily: In recent years, the flexibility of the two-way fluctuations of renminbi has been enhanced. The SAFE has been pushing enterprises to establish the idea of exchange rate risk neutrality. What suggestions do you have for enterprises on exchange rate risk management? Thank you! 11:09:01 10/22/2024 Li Hongyan: Thanks for your question. In recent years, media friends have helped the foreign exchange administrative authorities make a lot of effective publicity and reports on enterprises’ exchange rate risk management. First of all, I would like to thank you all for your support in foreign exchange administration. The SAFE has always attached importance to, supported and served enterprises’ exchange rate risk management, and has made efforts in many aspects. On the one hand, the foreign exchange market has constantly been improving conditions for serving enterprises’ exchange rate risk management. At present, there is a mature international foreign exchange derivatives system including forward, swap and options. Over 120 small, medium-sized and large banks of various kinds, whether Chinese or foreign funded, can now open foreign exchange derivatives business. They provide market services covering all parts of China and trading available to the main currencies for cross-border settlement by enterprises, with a complete infrastructure for trading, clearing, and so on. On the other hand, we continue to guide enterprises to establish the concept of exchange rate risk neutrality and promote banks to improve their foreign exchange services for enterprises, especially the micro, small and medium-sized ones. Through various efforts, enterprises have gradually improved their exchange rate risk management. In the first three quarters of 2024, the foreign exchange derivatives used by enterprises to manage exchange rate risks totaled over USD 1.1 trillion, and over 32,000 enterprises tried exchange rate hedging for the first time. These data are at a historically high level. In an environment of open economy and market-based exchange rate, enterprises need to pay attention to exchange rate risk management. The use of foreign exchange derivatives is an important means of exchange rate hedging. We also understand in daily research that some enterprises have some concerns on issues such as the price cost of derivatives and the effectiveness of value preservation. Here I want to share some ideas with you and enterprises. Foreign exchange derivatives have market pricing mechanisms that are common at home and abroad. For example, the prices for forward settlement and sales of foreign exchange are based on the spot prices of foreign exchange, with a certain amount of appreciation or depreciation according to the spread of local and foreign currencies. For another example, buying a foreign exchange option is similar to buying an insurance policy, which requires a premium to be paid accordingly. It is necessary and cost-effective for enterprises to hedge at a certain cost. The essence of hedging is to translate uncertainty about future exchange rate fluctuations into certainty, and thus reduce the impact of such fluctuations on the operations of enterprises. Market practice also shows that enterprises should make reasonable use of various instruments such as foreign exchange derivatives for hedging according to their own foreign exchange exposures, and should correctly evaluate the effectiveness of hedging. In particular, it is undesirable to assess the loss or gain of hedging simply by comparing the locked forward rate with the spot rate at maturity. It is a key task for the SAFE to service enterprises’ foreign exchange risk management. We will continue to strengthen publicity and training in the market, promote financial institutions to optimize their services, and cooperate with multiple parties to reduce the cost of foreign exchange hedging. We will also deepen the development of the foreign exchange market, build better foreign exchange financial infrastructure and services, and support enterprises in better managing foreign exchange risks. This August, we released on the official website of the SAFE the updated book Guidelines for Enterprise Exchange Rate Risk Management, adding new information on market practice and several business cases. The book introduces the accounting applications of hedging, which is interesting to many enterprises. We hope that the Guidelines can better provide targeted help to enterprises, and also hope that media friends can help us make more publicity. Thank you. 2024-10-22/en/2024/1022/2276.html
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国家外汇管理局各省、自治区、直辖市分局、外汇管理部，深圳、大连、青岛、厦门、宁波市分局；各中资外汇指定银行： 为充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，支持国家“走出去”战略的实施，充分利用国际国内两种资源、两个市场，进一步简化和便利境内居民通过特殊目的公司从事投融资活动所涉及的跨境资本交易，切实服务实体经济发展，有序提高跨境资本和金融交易可兑换程度，根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》等规定，现就境内居民通过特殊目的公司境外投融资及返程投资外汇管理有关问题通知如下： 一、本通知所称“特殊目的公司”，是指境内居民（含境内机构和境内居民个人）以投融资为目的，以其合法持有的境内企业资产或权益，或者以其合法持有的境外资产或权益，在境外直接设立或间接控制的境外企业。 本通知所称“返程投资”，是指境内居民直接或间接通过特殊目的公司对境内开展的直接投资活动，即通过新设、并购等方式在境内设立外商投资企业或项目（以下简称外商投资企业），并取得所有权、控制权、经营管理权等权益的行为。 本通知所称“境内机构”，是指中国境内依法设立的企业事业法人以及其他经济组织；“境内居民个人”是指持有中国境内居民身份证、军人身份证件、武装警察身份证件的中国公民，以及虽无中国境内合法身份证件、但因经济利益关系在中国境内习惯性居住的境外个人。 本通知所称“控制”，是指境内居民通过收购、信托、代持、投票权、回购、可转换债券等方式取得特殊目的公司的经营权、收益权或者决策权。 二、国家外汇管理局及其分支机构（以下简称外汇局）对境内居民设立特殊目的公司实行登记管理。境内居民个人设立的特殊目的公司登记及相关外汇管理，按本通知执行。境内机构设立的特殊目的公司登记及相关外汇管理，按现行规定和本通知执行。 三、境内居民以境内外合法资产或权益向特殊目的公司出资前，应向外汇局申请办理境外投资外汇登记手续。境内居民以境内合法资产或权益出资的，应向注册地外汇局或者境内企业资产或权益所在地外汇局申请办理登记；境内居民以境外合法资产或权益出资的，应向注册地外汇局或者户籍所在地外汇局申请办理登记。 境内居民个人应提交以下真实性证明材料办理境外投资外汇登记手续： （一）书面申请与《境内居民个人境外投资外汇登记表》。 （二）个人身份证明文件。 （三）特殊目的公司登记注册文件及股东或实际控制人证明文件（如股东名册、认缴人名册等）。 （四）境内外企业权力机构同意境外投融资的决议书（企业尚未设立的，提供权益所有人同意境外投融资的书面说明）。 （五）境内居民个人直接或间接持有的拟境外投融资境内企业资产或权益，或者合法持有境外资产或权益的证明文件。 （六）在前述材料不能充分说明交易的真实性或申请材料之间的一致性时，要求提供的补充材料。 境内机构按《国家外汇管理局关于发布〈境内机构境外直接投资外汇管理规定〉的通知》（汇发〔2009〕30号）等相关规定办理境外投资外汇登记手续。 境内居民办理境外投资外汇登记后，方可办理后续业务。 四、境内居民及其设立的特殊目的公司，不得危害我国国家主权、安全和社会公共利益；不得违反我国法律法规；不得损害我国与有关国家（地区）关系；不得违反我国对外缔结的国际条约；不得涉及我国禁止出口的技术或产品。 境外特殊目的公司登记不具有证明其投融资行为已符合行业主管部门合法合规的效力。 五、已登记境外特殊目的公司发生境内居民个人股东、名称、经营期限等基本信息变更，或发生境内居民个人增资、减资、股权转让或置换、合并或分立等重要事项变更后，应及时到外汇局办理境外投资外汇变更登记手续。 境内居民境外投资外汇变更登记完成后，方可办理后续业务（含利润、红利汇回）。 六、非上市特殊目的公司以本企业股权或期权等为标的，对其直接或间接控制的境内企业的董事、监事、高级管理人员及其他与公司具有雇佣或劳动关系的员工进行权益激励的，相关境内居民个人在行权前可提交以下材料到外汇局申请办理特殊目的公司外汇登记手续： （一）书面申请与《境内居民个人境外投资外汇登记表》。 （二）已登记的特殊目的公司的境外投资外汇业务登记凭证。 （三）相关境内企业出具的个人与其雇佣或劳动关系证明材料。 （四）特殊目的公司或其实际控制人出具的能够证明所涉权益激励真实性的证明材料。 （五）在前述材料不能充分说明交易的真实性或申请材料之间的一致性时，要求提供的补充材料。 境内居民个人参与境外上市公司股权激励计划按相关外汇管理规定办理。 七、特殊目的公司完成境外融资后，融资资金如调回境内使用的，应遵守中国外商投资和外债管理等相关规定。返程投资设立的外商投资企业应按照现行外商直接投资外汇管理规定办理相关外汇登记手续，并应如实披露股东的实际控制人等有关信息。 八、境内居民从特殊目的公司获得的利润、红利调回境内的，应按照经常项目外汇管理规定办理；资本变动外汇收入调回境内的，应按照资本项目外汇管理规定办理。 九、因转股、破产、解散、清算、经营期满、身份变更等原因造成境内居民不再持有已登记的特殊目的公司权益的，或者不再属于需要办理特殊目的公司登记的，应提交相关真实性证明材料及时到外汇局办理变更或注销登记手续。 十、境内居民直接或间接控制的境内企业，可在真实、合理需求的基础上按现行规定向其已登记的特殊目的公司放款。 十一、境内居民可在真实、合理需求的基础上购汇汇出资金用于特殊目的公司设立、股份回购或退市等。 十二、本通知实施前，境内居民以境内外合法资产或权益已向特殊目的公司出资但未按规定办理境外投资外汇登记的，境内居民应向外汇局出具说明函说明理由。外汇局根据合法性、合理性等原则办理补登记，对涉嫌违反外汇管理规定的，依法进行行政处罚。 十三、境内居民与境外特殊目的公司之间的跨境收支，应按现行规定办理国际收支统计申报。 十四、外汇局定期分析境内居民通过特殊目的公司境外投融资及返程投资整体情况，密切关注其对国际收支的影响，并加强对境内居民通过特殊目的公司境外投融资及返程投资的事中、事后监管。 十五、境内居民或其直接、间接控制的境内企业通过虚假或构造交易汇出资金用于特殊目的公司，外汇局根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》第三十九条进行处罚。 境内居民未按规定办理相关外汇登记、未如实披露返程投资企业实际控制人信息、存在虚假承诺等行为，外汇局根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》第四十八条第（五）项进行处罚。 在境内居民未按规定办理相关外汇登记、未如实披露返程投资企业实际控制人信息或虚假承诺的情况下，若发生资金流出，外汇局根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》第三十九条进行处罚；若发生资金流入或结汇，根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》第四十一条进行处罚。 境内居民与特殊目的公司相关跨境收支未按规定办理国际收支统计申报的，外汇局根据《中华人民共和国外汇管理条例》第四十八条第（一）项进行处罚。 十六、本通知自发布之日起实施。《国家外汇管理局关于境内居民通过境外特殊目的公司融资及返程投资外汇管理有关问题的通知》（汇发〔2005〕75号）同时废止。之前相关规定与本通知内容不一致的，以本通知为准。 国家外汇管理局各分局、外汇管理部接到本通知后，应及时转发辖内中心支局、支局、城市商业银行、农村商业银行、外资银行、农村合作银行；各中资银行接到通知后，应及时转发所辖各分支机构。执行中如遇问题，请及时向国家外汇管理局资本项目管理司反馈。 附件：1.返程投资外汇管理所涉业务操作指引 2.资本项目直接投资外汇业务申请表 国家外汇管理局 2014年7月4日 2025-01-08/tianjin/2025/0108/2694.html
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为贯彻落实党的二十届三中全会和中央经济工作会议精神，提升跨境贸易和投融资便利化水平，日前，国家外汇管理局发布《银行外汇业务尽职免责规定（试行）》（汇发〔2024〕33号，以下简称《尽职免责规定》），进一步明确银行外汇业务审核责任边界，激励银行“能干、愿干、敢干”，更好支持和服务实体经济高质量发展。 《尽职免责规定》共四章29条，主要内容包括：一是在总则中明确适用范围、免责对象、责任界定和举证责任。明确免除的是银行可能承担的与行政处罚相关的法律责任。银行申述提出尽职免责事项，应当提供充分证据予以证明。尽职免责的评议由全国及省级外汇市场自律机制负责组织。二是梳理形成8类尽职免责情形，并明确每类情形的基本内涵、适用条件，为执法评议提供标准。三是明确申述评议程序，包括银行发起申述和国家外汇管理局及其分局（以下统称外汇局）审议后提交外汇市场自律机制进行组织评议等环节。其中，是否启动评议由外汇局集体审议决定，地市分局案件启动评议的审议工作由省级外汇检查部门归口管理。四是明确申述评议程序不计入行政处罚办理期限。 前期，《尽职免责规定》已在广东、上海、深圳进行试点，得到银行积极反馈和欢迎，并于2024年9月公开向社会征求意见，经充分研究论证，大部分意见已吸收采纳，具体采纳情况详见《关于<银行外汇业务尽职免责规定（试行）（征求意见稿）>公开征求意见的反馈》。 下一步，国家外汇管理局将深入学习贯彻党的二十届三中全会和中央经济工作会议精神，按照全国金融系统工作会议部署要求，围绕防风险、强监管、促发展工作主线，加力推动银行外汇展业改革提质扩面，稳步推进《尽职免责规定》在全国范围内落实落地，促进跨境贸易和投融资便利化政策惠及更多经营主体，提升外汇服务实体经济质效。 2025-01-07/guangdong/2025/0107/2915.html
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为进一步做好出口骗税、涉汇非法经营等资金分析和追踪，深入挖掘地下钱庄线索，严厉打击外汇领域违法违规行为，近日，自贡市分局会同自贡市公安经侦支队、人民银行自贡市分行反洗钱科开展涉汇违法线索开展联合会商研判。会上，经侦支队对2起涉汇违法线索情况进行了详细通报，就进一步深挖违法线索，对外汇、反洗钱提出了加大协助的相关诉求。自贡市分局对全省外汇检查部门改革情况进行了介绍，对外汇局检查信息系统建设、数据监测分析等专业支撑体系作了沟通。反洗钱科介绍了全市打击洗钱违法案件情况，表示将加强对涉地下钱庄洗钱线索联合会商，加大协同打击力度。此外，三方就2起涉汇违法线索中收付汇、结售汇、本外币账户管理等业务环节进行深入研讨，对可能涉及违法资金通过地下钱庄汇入汇出情况开展研判分析，形成联合打击共识，明确了下阶段重点突破方向。 下一步，自贡市分局将持续加强与经侦、反洗钱、税务、海关等部门协同联动，加强联合分析研判，着力挖掘地下钱庄线索，力争尽快在联合打击涉汇违法违规行为方面取得突破。 2025-01-08/sichuan/2025/0108/2845.html
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近期，李宜聪副局长带队赴中国银行厦门市分行，调研跨境贸易投资高水平试点政策推动落地情况。外汇管理处、国际收支处相关人员陪同参加。 中国银行厦门市分行相关人员汇报该行作为试点行在推动政策红利释放方面采取的措施和取得的成效。双方就政策推广过程中存在问题、企业诉求和建议进行了探讨。 2025-01-08/xiamen/2025/0108/2268.html
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附件：宁波市分局执法证人员信息（截至2025年1月6日） 2025-01-08/ningbo/2025/0108/2318.html
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2025年全国外汇管理工作会议1月3日至4日在京召开。会议全面贯彻落实党的二十大和二十届二中、三中全会以及中央经济工作会议精神，总结2024年外汇管理工作，分析当前金融外汇形势，研究部署2025年重点工作。国家外汇管理局党组书记、局长朱鹤新作工作报告。国家外汇管理局党组成员、副局长，总会计师出席会议。 会议指出，2024年，外汇管理部门坚决贯彻落实党中央、国务院决策部署，以接受二十届中央第三轮巡视为契机，加强统筹谋划，坚持稳进结合，真抓实干、攻坚克难，各方面工作取得新成效。全年国际收支基本平衡，外汇市场在复杂严峻形势下保持较强韧性。一是以政治建设为统领全面加强党的建设。把学习贯彻习近平总书记重要讲话和重要指示批示精神作为首要政治任务，巩固拓展主题教育成果，认真开展党纪学习教育，扎实推动巡视整改，以实际行动坚定拥护“两个确立”、坚决做到“两个维护”。二是外汇支持实体经济质效不断提升。贯彻落实2024年9月26日中央政治局会议精神，推动外债登记由银行直接办理等3项跨境投融资便利化试点扩围。持续提升跨境贸易和投融资便利化水平，以支持科创企业为重点做好金融“五篇大文章”。取消外贸企业名录登记行政许可，推动优质企业贸易外汇收支便利化政策扩面提质，支持贸易新业态发展，优化外籍来华人员外汇服务。推动银行外汇展业改革扩围，健全配套制度体系。三是外汇领域高水平开放稳步推进。推动资本项目高质量开放，联合中国人民银行修订境外机构投资者境内证券期货投资资金管理规定，有序支持境内机构开展跨境证券投资，优化跨国公司本外币一体化资金池业务试点政策。持续推进外汇市场建设，完善企业汇率风险管理服务。支持重点区域开放发展，扩大跨境贸易投资高水平开放政策试点。四是开放条件下的监管能力和水平进一步提升。加强宏观审慎管理，强化逆周期调节和预期引导，促进外汇市场供求平衡。加强事中事后监管，完善非现场监管工作机制，严厉打击地下钱庄、跨境赌博、出口骗税等外汇违法违规活动。五是外汇储备经营管理不断完善，年初以来外汇储备规模稳定在3.2万亿美元以上。 会议强调，2025年，外汇管理工作要以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导，深入贯彻党的二十大和二十届二中、三中全会精神，认真落实中央经济工作会议和中央金融工作会议决策部署，按照全国金融系统工作会议要求，坚持稳中求进、以进促稳，守正创新、系统集成，更好统筹发展和安全，锚定建立健全“更加便利、更加开放、更加安全”的外汇管理体制机制，实施更加积极有为的外汇管理政策，推动外汇领域深层次改革和高水平开放，防范化解外部冲击风险，为高质量完成“十四五”规划目标任务、实现“十五五”良好开局作出更大贡献。 会议部署了2025年外汇管理重点工作。一是纵深推进全面从严治党。认真落实“第一议题”制度，推进党纪学习教育常态化长效化，走好第一方阵，当好“三个表率”，建设模范机关。二是从严从实抓好巡视“后半篇文章”。坚持问题导向，深化标本兼治，以整改实际成效彰显政治担当。三是加力推进外汇便利化改革。继续做好金融“五篇大文章”，将更多科技型企业纳入跨境融资便利化试点，引导境外高质量资本投向境内高新技术行业。按照既“放得活”又“管得住”的要求，有序扩展银行外汇展业改革覆盖面。积极支持稳外贸、稳外资，推动贸易便利化政策优化扩围，提升贸易新业态外汇业务便利化水平，促进外商投资汇兑便利。建立外汇管理政策评估机制。四是加力推进外汇领域制度型开放。优化境内企业境外上市资金管理，推进企业外债管理改革，持续完善跨国公司资金池政策。建设开放多元、功能健全、竞争有序的外汇市场，引导金融机构健全汇率风险管理服务长效机制，完善外汇市场基础设施。支持自由贸易试验区提升战略，支持上海、香港国际金融中心建设，支持海南自由贸易港、粤港澳大湾区开展外汇管理创新。五是加力维护外汇市场基本稳定。强化形势监测研判，完善跨境资金流动监测预警体系，加强外汇市场逆周期调节和预期管理。六是加力构建完备有效的外汇监管体系。建立健全事中事后监管工作机制，充分运用科技手段提升监管效能。保持对外汇领域违法违规活动高压打击态势，协同加强非法跨境金融活动源头治理。七是加力推进外汇储备经营管理高质量发展，保障外汇储备资产安全、流动和保值增值。八是加力做好基础性工作。加快推进《外汇管理条例》修订，推进现代化国际收支统计体系建设，研究构建“智慧外管”，科技赋能、数据赋能外汇管理与服务。 国家外汇管理局各部门、各省级分局、各所属单位主要负责同志，派驻纪检监察组负责同志参加会议。中央财经委员会办公室、中央金融委员会办公室、国务院办公厅、审计署有关同志应邀出席会议。（完） 2025-01-09/jilin/2025/0109/2478.html