Interest Rate Liberalization in China

Abstract

Embarking on interest rate liberalization reforms nearly two decades ago, China has made significant progress. Our paper takes a closer look at interest rate liberalization in China, and reviews historical progress and current efforts that Chinese authorities have made to date. Similar to international experiences, the process of market-based interest rate reform is to liberalize interest rates of the money market and bond market prior to those charged for deposits and loans. In gradually liberalizing the loan and deposit rates, reform measures are introduced on foreign currencies before domestic currency, on loans before deposits, and on long-term and large-value loans and deposits before short-term and small-value instruments. Until now, the authorities has yet to take the final and most critical step — removing deposit rate ceilings — to reach full interest rate liberalization. Our paper also explains why the pace of interest rate liberalization is too slow, and points out the main barrier to the further liberalization. In addition, the appendix of this paper provides a chronicle of interest rate liberalization during the period from the beginning of the reform to 2014.