China's top legislature approves bill to raise local government debt ceiling by 6 trillion yuan

The Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, on Friday approved a bill to raise the local government debt ceiling by 6 trillion yuan ($836.74 billion) to replace existing hidden debts of local governments, according to a press conference held in Beijing on Friday.

The new debts will be issued in the form of local government special-purpose bonds for a period of three years, or 2 trillion yuan a year, Xu Hongcai, deputy director of the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress, told reporters.

According to the arrangement, the ceiling of China's local government special-purpose bonds will be raised from 29.52 trillion yuan to 35.52 trillion yuan by the end of 2024, Xu said.