China's central bank has told several lenders to set aside additional money on top of a 50 basis-point reserve ratio hike announced this week, state-run media reported Friday.
Bank of Communications and China Everbright Bank were among the banks facing an extra 50 basis point increase for three months starting next Tuesday, the 21st Century Business Herald reported, citing unnamed sources.
The requirement means the affected banks would have to keep the equivalent of 18 percent of their assets in reserve as a guarantee against bad loans, the report said.
The People's Bank of China announced Wednesday in a one-line statement it would raise the amount of money that lenders must keep in reserve as official concerns persist over inflation and rising housing costs.
The central bank has not yet publicly announced the extra hike for specific banks, suggesting the move could have been communicated internally.
Its separate decision to raise the reserve ratio by 50 basis points industry-wide, effective November 16, came after China said that consumer prices had risen at their fastest pace in more than two years in October.
The country's consumer price index rose 4.4 percent last month, the fastest pace since September 2008 — the start of the global financial crisis — when prices rose 4.6 percent. Prices were up 0.7 percent month-on-month.
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