One of China’s top financial officials has sought to rebuild confidence in the struggling property sector on the eve of the country’s annual rubber-stamp congress, as Beijing looks to revive a central driver of economic growth. Pan Gongsheng, vice-governor of the People’s Bank of China, said the central bank would “learn from experience”, a reference to the market liquidity crisis triggered by the default of property developer Evergrande in late 2021 and the government’s introduction of tighter debt limits. “The financing environment in the real estate industry, especially among high-quality developers, has improved significantly,” Pan said at a press conference in Beijing on Friday, pointing to a rise in bond issuance and loans for mergers and acquisitions late last year after Beijing unveiled measures to boost lending to real estate developers.
