13th - 19th Mar 2015 Macro-economy & Policy  Banking  Insurance  RMB Internationalization  FTZ  Market Macro-economy & Policy  Mar 17: Balance economic growth and restructuring  China's economy is still facing mounting downward pressure as economic data of the first two months remains weak, partly due to the slowdown of the country's growth. Accumulated fixed-asset investment grew 13.9 percent from a year earlier, down 4 percentage points compared with the same period last year and 1.8 percentage points compared with that throughout 2014. Source: China Daily Mar 13: China's prudent monetary policy to continue  China will not change its prudent monetary policy stance, but would consider adopting a more flexible approach by tilting it toward either a tighter or more easing direction, a top central bank official said on Thursday. Source: China Daily Mar 17: More European countries to join AIIB  The membership of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is set to expand further, with France, Germany and Italy reported to have all agreed to join the China-proposed institution. Source: Xinhua News 1 China Financial Weekly Report 19 March 2015 Banking Mar 18: Stricter rules being considered for P2P lenders  China's banking regulator is considering setting a threshold for market access, and introducing strict conditions on the leverage management of Chinese peer-to-peer lending companies, which industry experts said could help control risks, but also limit the sector's development. Source: China Daily Mar 16: Lenders bank on European growth  Chinese banks are increasingly expanding into Europe to better internationalize the renminbi and integrate China's financial services into the global financial system Source: China Daily Insurance Mar 18: Lloyd's to double premiums in China  Lloyd's opened a branch office in Beijing on March 16. Under the new branch license, it will be able to provide non-life insurance and reinsurance services within the Beijing Municipal Administrative region. Source: China Daily RMB Internationalization Mar 13: IMF in talks over yuan as reserve currency  China is in talks with the International Monetary Fund for the Washington-based institution to add the yuan to its basket of reserve currencies, a top banking official said yesterday as Beijing seeks a greater global role for the unit. Source: Shanghai Daily FTZ Mar 13: New Guangdong FTZ set to boost investment  The newly approved Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone will offer preferential policies for investment from the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao, according to a top provincial official. 2 China Financial Weekly Report 19 March 2015 Source: China Daily Markets Mar 17: Securities companies may come under the anti-corruption radar  The China Securities Regulatory Commission has reportedly launched comprehensive on-site inspections of financial institutions, a move seen as a sign that the anti-corruption campaign is widening into the securities and financial sectors. Source: China Daily Mar 17: Listing to boost Internet finance firms  More Internet finance companies can consider listing on the A-share market to gain acceptance and recognition in China, despite they should deal with the risks from loss guarantee and rigid redemption, industry experts said on Monday. Source: China Daily City of London China Offices Beijing Representative Office: Tel:+8610 6535 0239 Shanghai Representative Office: Tel:+8621 6032 1523 Copyright © 2011 City of London. All rights reserved. City of London is the sole owner of the copyright in the China Financial Weekly Report. You may only access and use the information or material in this report for personal educational purposes. Any alteration/modification either in whole or in part or usage of the materials for other than personal educational purposes shall be in violation of the copyright laws. No part of this report may be reproduced without the prior written consent of the City of London. The information or material appearing in this report has been compiled from various sources including websites owned and operated by third parties and the City of London, its employees or agents take no responsibility for the content in this report or the accuracy of the information appearing in this report or such third party websites. 3 China Financial Weekly Report 19 March 2015