China's central bank beefs up financial support for agriculture, small firms

China's central bank on Tuesday announced an increase in the relending quota for the agricultural sector and small enterprises located in 12 provincial-level regions that have been ravaged by floods.

The relending quota will expand by 100 billion yuan (US$13.99 billion) for qualifying firms in Chongqing, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Henan, Heilongjiang, Hunan, Jilin, Jiangxi, Liaoning, Shaanxi and Sichuan, according to the People's Bank of China.

Relending is the central bank's lending to financial institutions at a certain interest rate, which is a monetary policy tool that the former can employ to adjust the monetary base, in order to achieve credit supply goals.

Financial institutions should simplify procedures and expedite approval processes to ensure the funding needs of affected enterprises are met, and should assist them in resuming production, the central bank said.