The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank, announced a cut in the reserve requirement ratio for financial institutions by 0.5 percentage point, effective Friday, as part of its latest push to foster stable economic growth and high-quality development.

The adjustment excludes financial institutions already subject to a 5 percent reserve ratio. Following this change, the weighted average reserve requirement for financial institutions will be approximately 6.6 percent.

In a concerted effort to strengthen counter-cyclical monetary policy adjustments, the PBOC also reduced the interest rates for its seven-day reverse repo operations from 1.70 percent to 1.50 percent. 

The rates for the 14-day reverse repo and temporary liquidity operations will continue to be determined based on the adjusted seven-day reverse repo rate, with the existing margin adjustments remaining unchanged.

The central bank adheres to a supportive monetary policy stance with strengthened and more precise regulations to create a sound monetary and financial environment for stable economic growth and high-quality development, the PBOC said in a statement.

These latest policy adjustments come following an early-week announcement of a slew of measures to stimulate the economy, including those that support the property sector and the capital market.

(Cover via CFP)