State Administration of Foreign Exchange: It is expected that the scale of China's external debt will continue to remain stable in the fourth quarter.

Recently, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange announced the data on China's external debt at the end of June 2024. The relevant person in charge of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange answered questions from journalists on related issues. The official stated that global inflation has cooled at high levels this year, with developed economies such as Canada, the EU, the UK, and the US sequentially cutting interest rates. At the same time, China's economic fundamentals, the broad market, strong economic resilience, and great potential have remained unchanged. It is expected that in the fourth quarter, the possibility of China's external debt continuing to deleverage is small, and the scale of external debt is expected to remain stable. The official's statements on China's external debt in the second quarter of 2024 were summarized, showing an increase in external debt size from the first quarter, with a stable structure. As of the end of June 2024, China's total external debt balance (including both onshore and offshore) was $2,453 billion, an increase of $327 billion from the end of March 2024, representing a 1.3% growth. The official also highlighted the composition of the debt in terms of currency and duration. The official emphasized that the current situation of China's external debt is stable amid various factors. The size of external debt has been steadily increasing due to a combination of factors such as the gradual easing of monetary policies in major developed economies, overall stable domestic economic performance, and other internal and external factors. The official predicted that China's external debt size will continue to maintain stability, given the global inflation cooling, interest rate cuts in developed economies, and China's strong economic fundamentals and market opportunities. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange also released data on China's total external debt at the end of June 2024, showing a balance of 181.399 trillion RMB (equivalent to $25.453 billion). The breakdown of external debt by currency, duration, institution sector, debt instruments, and other metrics was provided in the statement. Overall, China's external debt indicators are within internationally recognized safety levels, indicating that the country's external debt risks are generally under control.