yuan Photo: CFP

China has allocated all the funds raised from the issuance of an additional 1 trillion yuan ($139 billion) of government bonds for post-disaster rebuilding and disaster prevention projects, China's top economic planner said on Wednesday, in a major boost for infrastructure investment and related economic activity. 

In October 2023, China announced a plan to issue an additional 1 trillion yuan in treasury bonds, as part of its efforts to support post-disaster reconstruction and enhance disaster prevention capabilities. The move was widely hailed as a major boost for China's economic recovery, as it would increase investment in infrastructure and other economic activities. 

The swift allocation of the funds came amid efforts by Chinese policymakers to boost the economic recovery in 2024.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the top economic planning agency, said on Wednesday that it has allocated 200 billion yuan of funds raised by the issuance of the additional government bonds to a third batch of projects totaling more than 2,800, which focused on post-disaster rebuilding and disaster prevention in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and Northwest China's Gansu and Qinghai provinces.  

With the allocation of the third batch of funds, all funds raised from the issuance of the additional government bonds have been allocated, according to the NDRC. 

The NDRC vowed that it will work with relevant departments to supervise and accelerate the start of construction for the projects, speed up the allocation and use of the funds, and maximize the benefits of the funds as soon as possible.

The agency also said that it will step up supervision during and after the projects and strive to ensure that the projects are beneficial to the public, of high-quality and that there is no corruption involved.

The NDRC has allocated funds for three batches of projects. Prior to the third batch, the agency in late December announced that it had allocated 560 billion yuan of funds for more than 9,600 projects. The first batch of projects was announced around mid-December, involving 237.9 billion yuan and more than 2,900 projects.  

The issuance of the additional bonds will drive the country's fiscal deficit ratio for 2023 to an estimated 3.8 percent, a new high, and above the target of 3 percent set at the beginning of the year, but it can help to ease the fiscal burden for local governments, experts said.