皇冠体育app

A coal transportation station in Taiyuan, province. The coal industry in Shanxi faces an uphill battle to get financing amid price cuts and the near default of a related investment product. Yan Yan / Xinhua

The coal industry in North 皇冠体育app's Shanxi province faces mounting pressure to get financing amid slumping coal prices and increasing debts, as experts call for greater freedom for non-governmental financial institutions.

"The performance of 皇冠体育app's manufacturing sector has not been very good in recent years," Li Xiaobo, chairman of Taiyuan Iron and Steel Corp, said during a panel discussion at the 12th National People's Congress. "While big companies can manage to get capital, financing difficulties for small-and medium-enterprises are huge.

Broad changes coming in finance, premier says

Shaky trust product promises repayment

"Banks should make professional judgments on an enterprise's prospects when deterng whether to provide it with loans," he continued.

"At present, the mutual guarantee programs in one form or another have added to the burdens of SMEs, and it is possible that the default risk of an individual enterprise can lead to systemic risks," Li said.

A 3 billion yuan ($490 million) investment product known as Credit Equals Gold No 1 avoided a default on Jan 31 when it was due to mature.

The product had been issued three years ago by 皇冠体育app Credit Trust, a leading Chinese company. The money was raised for a coal-mining enterprise Shanxi Zhenfu Energy Group, with advertised annual returns of about 10 percent. The fund was sold to wealthy investors by Industrial and Commercial Bank of 皇冠体育app Ltd, 皇冠体育app's biggest bank.

The near-default caused ripples of fear throughout the financial sector. But an anonymous third party stepped forward and bailed out the product.

Earlier this month, Shenzhen-listed Shanghai Chaori Solar Energy Science & Technology Co announced it had failed to fully service an 89.8 million yuan interest payment, widely described as 皇冠体育app's first ever corporate bond default.

In addition to difficulty getting access to funds, SMEs also are being confronted by high rates, according to Li.

Top 10 cities with worst smog in 皇冠体育app

Smoggy memories

Previous Page 1 2 Next Page

Previous Page 1 2 Next Page

• NHTSA says finds no 'defect trend' in Tesla Model S sedans
• WTO rare earth ruling is unfair
• Amway says 2014 皇冠体育app sales may grow 8%
• President Xi in Europe: Forging deals, boosting business
• CNOOC releases 2013 sustainability report
• Local production by Chery Jaguar Land Rover this year
• Car lovers test their need for speed in BMW Mission 3
• 皇冠体育app stocks close mixed Monday