China to funnel more capital to science, technology sectors

BEIJING - China will funnel more capital into the real economy and innovation-oriented sectors to achieve self-reliance in science and technology, according to the People's Bank of China.

The country will deepen the supply-side structural reform of the financial sector and build a financial service system better suited to the financing needs of various types of technology-based enterprises, Zhang Qingsong, deputy governor of the central bank, told a press conference Thursday.

Such enterprises saw fast loan expansions in the first half of the year, data from the bank showed. During the period, middle and long-term outstanding loans of businesses in the high-tech manufacturing industry stood at 2.5 trillion yuan ($350.8 billion), up 41.5 percent year-on-year. Outstanding loans to small and medium-sized enterprises majoring in science and technology reached 2.36 trillion yuan, up 25.1 from a year earlier.