Laws of the People's Republic of China

Circular of the People's Bank of China on the Relevant Issues on the Interest Rate of the Loans for Ethnic Trade and the Production of Ethnic Articles During the "11th Five-Year Plan"

Ying Fa [2006] No.315

Shanghai Head Office, all branches, business administration departments, central sub-branches of provincial capital cities of the People's Bank of China, and all state-owned commercial banks:

For the purpose of supporting the development of the ethnic minority regions, the People's Bank of China, pursuant to the spirit of the relevant instructions of the State Council, determined to continue offering preferential interest rates to the loans for ethnic trade and the production of ethnic articles during the "11th five-year plan". The relevant issues are notified as follows:

The People's Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the State Ethnic Affairs Commission will actively make researches on new measures on the interest discount of the loans for ethnic trade and the production of ethnic articles during the "11th five-year plan". As for the designated enterprises in the business of ethnic trade and the production of the commodities specially needed by minority ethnic groups, all state-owned commercial banks shall, before the promulgation of new measures, continue carrying out the preferential interest rate policy, under which the interest rate of the normal loan for current capital shall be lower than the benchmark interest rate of the normal "one-year" loan for current capital by 2.88 percentage points and the preferential interest rate may not be floated, and this preferential policy shall enter into force as of January 1, 2006. The range of the granting of the loans with preferential interest rate, application for loan, administration of preferential interest rate, procedures for applying interest subsidies and other relevant issues shall be done still according to the Notice on Continuing Granting Preferential Interest Rate to the Loans for Ethnic Trade and the Production of Ethnic Articles (Yin Fa [1997] No.437 and the Notice of the People's Bank of China on Issues Concerning the Interest Rate of the Loans for Ethnic Trade and the Production of Ethnic Articles (Yin Fa [2003] No.8).

Shanghai Head Office, all branches, and the business administration departments of the People's Bank of China shall intensify the inspection and supervision of the carrying out of the preferential interest rate policy on the loans for ethnic trade and the production of ethnic articles, and do well the work in respect of interest discount.

People's Bank of China

September 6, 2006