STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Thursday, 5 June 2014

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12. IMF: CONTAINING CHINA'S FINANCIAL RISKS A PRIORITY

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_CHINA_IMF?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-06-05-04-41-59

BEIJING (AP) -- The International Monetary Fund urged China on Thursday to make a priority of containing financial risks that stem for its rising debt.

Beijing should avoid launching more economic stimulus unless growth drops well below this year's official target of 7.5 percent, said the IMF's first deputy managing director, David Lipton, after meeting Chinese officials.

Rising debts owed by local governments and uncertainty about largely unregulated informal lending have fueled concerns China's economic slowdown might cause a rise in defaults and hurt its financial system.

Chinese authorities have begun tightening controls. Lipton said Beijing still has room to prevent an abrupt slowdown in economic growth but risks are rising and regulators need to do more.