MNI China Press Digest June 23: Services, Connect, Bonds

Highlights from Chinese press reports on Monday:

• China should boost services consumption through promoting better supervision and consumer rights, as buyer confidence was undermined by increased disputes in culture and tourism, housekeeping, elderly care and education training sectors, said Economic Daily in a commentary. As a main economic driver, the growth rate of services consumption exceeded goods sales last year and during the first five months of 2025, the newspaper said. Service industry added value accounted for 54% of GDP on average in the past decade, versus over 60% in developed countries, demonstrating China’s potential as the world’s largest middle-income population, the newspaper said.
• Mainland and Hong Kong monetary authorities on Sunday launched a new connect programme to facilitate cross-border payments, the People’s Daily reported. The project connects the mainland’s Internet Banking Payment System and Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System (FPS), allowing for more convenient payment and money wire services. The scheme aims to quicken current account remittance services in yuan and Hong Kong dollars, mainly for residents’ salary, tuition fee and medical payments, the newspaper said.
• The Beijing Municipal Finance Bureau will allocate special purpose bonds (SPB) towards government investment guidance funds for the first time nationwide, Yicai.com reported. Previously, authorities were permitted to use such funds for direct government investment projects only, according to Hu Hengsong, vice general manager at Caitong Securities, adding that the move allowed better leveraging of fiscal funds and supported local industrial upgrading. Traditional SPB projects often faced delays leading to idle capital, whereas guidance funds allow for market-driven investments and improved capital efficiency, Hu added. Professor Wen Laicheng from the Central University of Finance and Economics, said government guidance funds invest broadly and include high-risk early-stage projects, promoting industrial transformation and innovation.