MNI China Daily Summary: Wednesday, April 30

EXCLUSIVE: Chinese interbank money market traders expect the central bank to provide additional monetary easing after pressures on exports from U.S. tariffs appear some time later in the second quarter, and to continue to support the financial system with liquidity, MNI’s China Money Market Index indicated.

POLICY: China's Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index fell by 1.5 points to 49.0 in April, falling below the breakeven 50 mark after staying in the expansionary zone for two months, driven by the high-base effect and the dramatically changing external environment, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

POLICY: China's Caixin manufacturing PMI came in at 50.4 in April, down from March's 51.2, staying in the expansionary zone above the 50 mark for the seventh straight month but hitting a three-month low, the financial publisher said.

POLICY: Chinese lawmakers have voted to adopt the Private Economy Promotion Law, the first dedicated law towards promoting the private sector, state media outlet Xinhua announced.

POLICY: Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed officials should anticipate global changes and adjust the domestic economic layout accordingly, state media outlet Xinhua reported, quoting remarks Xi made during a 15th Five-Year Plan symposium held in Shanghai.

LIQUIDITY: The People's Bank of China (PBOC) conducted CNY530.8 billion via 7-day reverse repos, with the rate unchanged at 1.50%. The operation led to a net injection of CNY422.8 billion after offsetting the maturities of CNY108 billion reverse repos today, according to Wind Information.

RATES: The seven-day weighted average interbank repo rate for depository institutions (DR007) rose to 1.7986% from 1.7824%, Wind Information showed. The overnight repo average increased to 1.7853% from 1.5378%.

YUAN: The currency strengthened to 7.2632 to the dollar from the previous 7.2653. The PBOC set the dollar-yuan central parity rate lower at 7.2014, compared with 7.2029 set on Tuesday. The fixing was estimated at 7.2678 by Bloomberg survey today.

BONDS: The yield on 10-year China Government Bonds was last at 1.6150%, down from the previous close of 1.6250, according to Wind Information.

STOCKS: The Shanghai Composite Index decreased 0.23% to 3,279.03, while the CSI300 index fell 0.12% to 3,770.57. The Hang Seng Index rose 0.51% at 22,119.41.

FROM THE PRESS: A recent survey from the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade showed 75% of China’s exporters plan to expand into emerging markets to compensate for declining U.S. sales, Yicai Global reported. Nearly half of the 1,100 firms surveyed said they intended to scale back business with the U.S. due to rising uncertainty caused by shifting tariff policies, CCPIT spokesperson Zhao Ping said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on Shanghai to accelerate efforts to build a global science and technology innovation hub, state news agency Xinhua reported. During a tour of the city, Xi visited a government-backed artificial intelligence incubator that hosts over 100 companies and an AI product showroom featuring smart glasses, toys and musical instruments.

Germany welcomes investment by Chinese carmakers and will support joint development of the auto industry, Hildegard Müller, president of the German Automotive Industry Association, told Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao at a recent meeting. Müller said the sector should uphold globalisation and expressed hope for progress in EU-China talks on electric vehicle tariffs, Yicai reported.