MNI China Press Digest June 27: Yuan, Rare Earth, Fiscal

Highlights from Chinese press reports on Friday:

• The yuan is expected to remain relatively strong in the short term, as the U.S. dollar faces depreciation pressure under the White Houses' domestic and foreign policy impacts on the U.S. economy, Securities Daily reported, citing Wang Qing, analyst with Golden Credit Rating. Both the onshore and offshore yuan rose to an intraday high of 7.15 on Thursday, the strongest since mid-November. China’s resilient economy helped support the yuan, with stable growth in industrial production and retail sales, as well as good capital market performance attracting inflows of cross-border funds, the newspaper said, citing analysts.
• China has continuously accelerated the review of rare earth-related export license applications, said He Yadong, spokesperson at the Ministry of Commerce at a press conference, responding to reports that the EU ambassador to China asked Beijing to solve the current shortage before the leaders' summit next month. He said authorities have approved a number of compliant applications and are willing to further strengthen communication on export controls with relevant countries.
• China’s fiscal policy will focus on already announced measures plus the timely introduction of additional actions going forwards, Yicai.com reported, citing fiscal and taxation experts. Previous years' policies normally included the issuance of special or general treasuries, local government bonds and policy-based financial instruments. The measures, generally introduced in H2, especially in Q4, increased fiscal funds to stabilise investment, employment and the housing market, and ensured the annual growth target was met, the newspaper said citing experts.