Strengthening the supervision of the banking system in Shanghai is necessary to meet the financial risks the country's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) will bring to China, a conference of the People's Bank of China heard Thursday.
"Accession to the WTO and globalization will impose challenges on the finance industry of Shanghai, but those challenges are also opportunities'' said Vice-Mayor Jiang Yiren at the first working conference of PBOC Shanghai Branch Thursday.
"We should grasp the opportunities to shape Shanghai into an international finance center with firm and wise supervision.'' According to Cai Esheng, president of PBOC Shanghai Branch, efficient supervision of State-owned commercial banks is of prime importance.
"The best way to improve State-owned bank's efficiency is to lower the proportion of bad loans.,'' said Cai.
He added that PBOC, which oversees China's banking system, would pay equal attention to supervision of small and medium-sized banking institutions.
"The reshuffle of urban credit co-operatives will take priority. We will try to complete the reform of 59 co-operatives by June this year,'' said Cai Esheng.
PBOC Shanghai Branch will speed up the reform of rural credit co-operatives as well.
"We will continue to improve the management of foreign exchange reserves in order to meet the requirements that WTO has put forward,'' said Cai.
The impact of globalization requires PBOC to carefully study foreign exchange regulations as international markets are increasingly merged.
The Shanghai Branch will help the head office of the PBOC establish a management information system for exchange monitoring in 2001.
The system will help improve the technology used in exchange controls.
Cai said PBOC Shanghai Branch would crack down on foreign exchange evasion and the gaining of foreign currencies by fraud.
(China Daily 01/19/01)
