Reduced new lending from China's banks

But it was more than expected. The average forecast was 17,870 billion yuan in new lending in 2024, according to a Bloomberg survey.

But new lending in 2023 was 22,750 billion yuan. And the clear decrease in new lending from Chinese banks last year was the first decline in 13 years.

The downward trend for banks' new lending in China is connected to deflationary tendencies and a lingering crisis in the real estate sector.