China to increase issuance of ultra-long special treasury bonds

China's policymakers will increase the issuance of ultra-long-term special treasury bonds in 2025, with a broader scope for their expenditure, the country's top economic regulator said on Friday. 

Yuan Da, deputy secretary-general of the National Development and Reform Commission, said the special treasury bonds will be used to promote the programs for large-scale equipment renewals and trade-in deals for consumer goods, further support major national strategies and build up security capacity in key areas.

"This year, we will extend the program and expand the scope to more consumption fields," Yuan told a news conference held on Friday in Beijing.

According to Yuan, the scope of equipment upgrades will be extended to fields such as electronic information, safety production, and protected agriculture, while households will be eligible for subsidies to purchase three types of digital products this year, including cell phones, tablet computers, and smartwatches.

Looking into 2025, Yuan said the country will also ramp up efforts to implement major national strategies and build up the security capacity in key areas. 

He said the country will continue to support key tasks including ecological and environmental protection and green development in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, new western land-sea corridor, public service systems for the urbanization of rural migrants, and the upgrading of higher education. 

The scope of water conservancy support will be extended to medium and large irrigated areas and water diversion projects nationwide. Intercity railway projects in key metropolitan areas will also be included in the list of supported projects, Yuan added. 

As of early December, China had fully allocated all proceeds from last year's 1 trillion yuan ($137 billion) in ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, with around 70 percent of proceeds funding projects for major national strategies and building up security capacity in key areas and the remainder going towards the schemes of large-scale equipment renewals and trade-in deals for consumer goods, according to the NDRC.