China's foreign debt soars more than 18%
28-12-2008
China's foreign debt increased by more than 18 percent in the first nine months of the year, with short-term debt rising especially fast, state media reported. At the end of September, overseas borrowing stood at 442 billion dollars, a rise of 18.3 percent from the end of last year. Despite this, China remains in a position to service its debt, as it also holds the world's largest foreign exchange reserves. Fuelled by its large trade surplus, China's forex reserves reached 1.9 trillion dollars in late September.
