大額存單助推中國利率市場化 China marks milestone in rates deregulation push

As gyrations in China’s stock market captivated the world’s attention in recent months, less eye-catching but ultimately more important changes were under way in the country’s Rmb133tn ($21tn) market for bank deposits.

最近幾個月，中國股市的大幅震盪引起了全球的關注。然而，在中國133萬億元人民幣（合21萬億美元）的銀行存款市場，卻在發生一些不那麼吸引眼球、但本質上更加重要的變化。

Chinese lenders sold certificates of deposit to the public at unregulated interest rates for the first time in the second quarter, the central bank has revealed, marking a milestone in the government’s push to let market forces set the price of money.

中國央行透露，今年第二季度，中國多家銀行首次以不受監管的利率面向公衆發行大額存單。在中國政府展開的讓市場力量成爲資金成本決定因素的努力中，此舉有着里程碑式的意義。

Eliminating government control over interest rates is seen as a crucial step in shifting China’s growth model away from state-directed investment and forcing banks to allocate funds more efficiently.

要使中國的增長模式擺脫對政府主導的投資的依賴、並迫使銀行更有效地配置資金，取消政府對利率的控制被視爲關鍵的一步。

The longstanding cap on bank deposit rates has ensured a plentiful supply of low-cost capital for state factories and public infrastructure projects but has also led to wasteful investment and spiralling debt.

長期以來對銀行存款利率施加的上限，確保了國有工廠及公共基建項目能夠獲得充裕的廉價資金供應。然而，這也催生了大量無效投資和不斷攀升的債務。

Cheap deposit funding has also discouraged banks from seeking out smaller borrowers willing to pay higher interest rates, since lenders earn fat margins even on conservative loans. Now, as China seeks growth based on efficiency gains rather than the construction of more new factories, roads and houses, it wants banks to lend more to companies that generate higher returns.

廉價的存款資金，還導致銀行不願費力尋找那些願支付較高利率的中小借款者，因爲即使是保守的貸款也能給銀行帶來豐厚的利潤。如今，在中國試圖通過提高效率而不是建設更多新工廠、公路和住房實現增長之際，中國政府希望銀行向能產生更高回報的企業多放貸。

“Promoting CDs substantively achieves partial interest-rate marketisation and is necessary preparation for full liberalisation of deposit rates,” said Li Kelin, economist at Minsheng Securities in Shanghai.

上海民生證券(Minsheng Securities)經濟學家李奇霖表示：“推廣大額存單在實質上實現了利率的部分市場化，是對全面放開存款利率管制的必要準備。”

The deposit-rate ceiling is the one remaining interest rate still set by government fiat, after the People’s Bank of China removed the floor on bank lending rates in 2013. Bond and money-market interest rates already float freely.

2013年中國央行取消銀行貸款利率下限後，存款利率上限就成了僅剩的一個仍由政府指令設定的利率。目前，中國債券利率和貨幣市場利率已經能夠自由浮動。

Market-based interest rates are also a key criterion that the International Monetary Fund will use to decide whether it will endorse the renminbi as an official reserve currency later this year. Zhou Xiaochuan, PBoC governor, said in March that the deposit-rate cap could be lifted by the end of 2015.

今年晚些時候國際貨幣基金組織(IMF)決定是否授予人民幣“官方儲備貨幣”身份時，市場化的利率也是一項關鍵評判指標。3月份，中國央行行長周小川表示，存款利率限制或將在今年底前取消。

Chinese lenders issued Rmb682bn in certificates of deposit to companies and individuals in June and July, the PBoC said in its quarterly monetary policy report published on Friday. “In the course of interest-rate marketisation, many countries have used large-denomination certificates of deposit as an important method for pushing ahead with reform,” the central bank said.

中國央行在上週五發布的季度貨幣政策報告中表示，今年6月和7月，中國各銀行向企業和個人發行了6820億元人民幣大額存單。中國央行表示：“從國際經驗看，不少國家在存款利率市場化的過程中，都曾以發行大額存單作爲推進改革的重要手段。”

Chinese certificates of deposit currently require a minimum investment of Rmb30,000 for individuals and Rmb10m for companies. The high threshold is designed to limit their mass-market appeal, thus avoiding an abrupt rise in banks’ funding costs as customers switch from regulated to unregulated deposits. But analysts expect these thresholds will gradually be lowered.

目前，中國的大額存單要求，個人投資者認購起點金額不低於30萬元人民幣，機構投資者認購起點金額不低於1000萬元人民幣。這一高門檻旨在限制它們對大衆市場的吸引力，避免因投資者從受監管的存款轉向不受監管的存款而導致銀行資金成本飆升。不過，分析師預計這些門檻會逐漸降低。

The central bank has cut benchmark interest rates four times since November to boost the slowing economy. But it has also granted banks increased freedom to set actual deposit rates above the benchmark. Deposit rates are now allowed to float as much as 50 per cent above the benchmark, up from only 10 per cent before November last year.

自去年11月以來，爲提振放緩的經濟，中國央行已四次下調基準利率。但它同時也賦予銀行更大的自由度來將實際存款利率設定在基準利率之上。目前，存款利率允許比基準利率上浮至多50%，而去年11月前至多隻能上浮10%。

In practice, the PBoC has informally instructed large banks not to raise deposit rates by the legal limit, in order to prevent them from passing higher funding costs on to borrowers amid a slowing economy.

在實際操作中，中國央行非正式地指示大型銀行不要把存款利率提高至法定上限處。此舉的目的是在經濟放緩之際，防止這些銀行將更高的資金成本轉嫁給借款方。

Bank certificates of deposit were sold in recent months at 40 per cent above the benchmark — still below the legal limit for normal deposits but above the rate big banks are actually offering for normal deposits.

最近幾個月發售的銀行大額存單，利率比基準利率高40%。這一利率仍低於一般存款的法定上限，但高於大型銀行一般存款的實際存款利率。