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China's foreign debt rises to $442b at end-Sept

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-12-27 11:59

China's outstanding foreign debt was $441.95 billion through September, up about 18.3 percent from the end of 2007, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) said on Friday.

The figure excluded Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

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Medium- and long-term foreign debt was $161.9 billion, up 5.45 percent from the end of 2007, accounting for 36.63 percent of the total foreign debt.

Short-term debt was $280 billion, up 27.24 percent from the end of last year.

The SAFE figures showed the country's registered foreign debt had reached $288.15 billion by the end of September.

Of the total, sovereign debt accounted for nearly 12 percent. Debt owed by Chinese financial institutions was $108.22 billion, or 37.56 percent of the total. Debt of foreign-invested enterprises was $93.21 billion, or 32.35 percent.

The SAFE said new debt reached $27.38 billion, including medium- and long-term foreign debt, in the first nine months, up 7.49 percent year-on-year.

China repaid $13.78 billion of principal on medium- and long-term debt in the first nine months, down 6.62 percent year-on-year.

It also repaid $2.96 billion in interest on medium- and long-term debt, up 10.88 percent year-on-year.