Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI.
大家好，我是主持人李莹亮。
Coming up on today’s program.
重点提要
-PBOC cuts one-year benchmark loan rate by 5 basis points for the first time in almost 2 years;
-All 90 members of HKSAR's 7th-term LegCo have been elected.
中国经济要闻
China’s central bank cut a benchmark lending rate on Monday for the first time since April 2020 during the height of the pandemic in the country.
The one-year loan prime rate was set at 3.8 percent versus 3.85 percent in November, according to a statement from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) on Monday. The five-year loan prime rate, a reference for mortgages, was unchanged at 4.65 percent.
The move follows the PBOC’s action earlier this month to cut the amount of cash banks must hold in reserve, which freed up 1.2 trillion yuan of cheap long-term funds for banks.
What does it mean for the market?
The LPR has been considered China’s de facto benchmark funding cost since a reform in 2019. It’s based on the interest rate for one-year loans that 18 banks offer their best customers, and is reported in the form of a spread over the interest rate on the central bank’s medium-term lending facility.
The two cuts of banks’ reserve requirement ratio in the past 6 months have accumulated sufficient momentum for commercial banks to lower their key benchmark for loan interest rates, and their historically low net interest margin is no longer a hindrance, analysts say. The cut will immediately feed through to outstanding floating rate business loans and should also lead to cheaper loans for new fixed-rate borrowers.
Since the LPR affects lending rates for corporate and household loans, the cut shows the authorities are increasingly open to the possibility of an interest-rate cut amid looming headwinds to the economy, while trying to keep the property market stabilised.
And to put it in a broader sense, the Central Economic Work Conference earlier this month emphasised that stability can be a larger focus in the subsequent 12 months. The assembly concluded that “prudent monetary policies should be flexible and appropriate, and liquidity should be maintained at a reasonable and ample level.”
LPR结束连续19个月“原地踏步”，一年期报价下调5个基点。
中央经济工作会议召开以来，12月LPR报价备受市场关注。从实际报价看，一年期LPR出现下降，五年期以上LPR保持不变。中国人民银行授权全国银行间同业拆借中心公布，2021年12月20日贷款市场报价利率（LPR）为：1年期LPR为3.8%，上个月为3.85%；5年期以上LPR为4.65%，与上月持平。这也是时隔近20个月来首次“降息”。
虽然12月MLF利率保持不变，但今年两次降准叠加6月存款利率报价改革推动银行资金成本下降，为12月LPR报价下调提供了空间。而中央经济工作会议提出经济面临“需求收缩、供给冲击、预期转弱”三重压力后，下调LPR有助于稳增长。
自今年7月15日全面降准以来，LPR连续5次保持不动，一个直接原因是此次降准带动的银行边际资金成本下降幅度较小，尚不足以促使下调LPR。另外，在净息差收窄至历史低位附近背景下，商业银行下调LPR的动力不足。而在12月15日年内第二次全面降准落地后，两次降准累计为金融机构直接降低资金成本每年约280亿元，积蓄LPR下调的动力已足够充分。
LPR报价下调对楼市、债市影响几何？分析认为，对楼市而言，一年期LPR下降，而5年期不动，符合地产调控、政策调结构的需要。对于债市而言，LPR下调将推进宽信用进程而非宽货币，LPR下调或将扩大信贷规模，支持实体经济，因此，宽信用冲击将利空债市。
新使命，大未来
All the 90 members of the seventh-term Legislative Council (LegCo) of Hong Kong SAR have been elected by Monday morning. The members were elected by the Election Committee constituency, functional constituencies, and geographical constituencies after over 1.3 million people voted on Sunday.
香港特区第七届立法会功能团体界别选举的30个议席20日上午揭晓。至此，第七届立法会90个议席全部顺利产生。此次选举是完善香港特区选举制度后的首次立法会选举，有超过130万选民投票。根据新修订的基本法附件二，新一届香港特区立法会由90名议员组成，其中包括选举委员会选举的议员40人、功能团体选举的议员30人和分区直接选举的议员20人。
China's State Council Information Office on Monday issued a white paper titled "Hong Kong: Democratic Progress Under the Framework of One Country, Two Systems.” The white paper presented a comprehensive review of the origin and development of democracy in Hong Kong and the principles and position of the central government.
国务院新闻办公室20日发表《“一国两制”下香港的民主发展》白皮书，全面回顾香港特别行政区民主的产生和发展历程，进一步阐明中央政府对香港特别行政区民主发展的原则立场。
疫情简报
The Chinese mainland reported 37 new local cases yesterday, including 24 in Shannxi and 10 in Zhejiang province.
全国昨日新增37例本土确诊病例（陕西24例，其中西安市21例、延安市2例、咸阳市1例；浙江10例，其中绍兴市9例、杭州市1例；广东2例，均在东莞市；北京1例，在通州区）。
产经消息及公司新闻
Chinese AI firm SenseTime Group filed updated listing documents with the Hong Kong exchange as it sought to resume its IPO, after a U.S. government directive forced the company to delay the process. The AI startup said it will reopen orders for its Hong Kong offering on Monday for its first-time share sale.
商汤重启IPO：12月20日，人工智能企业商汤科技在港交所发布公告称，重启公开招股，发行规模和定价区间与此前保持一致。商汤科技表示，美国制裁不会影响任何美国人士参与申购本次IPO。而经调整的基石投资者认购规模由原先的4.5亿美元，扩大至5.12亿美元。
Top Chinese live-streamer Viya has been slapped a massive fine for tax evasion, local authorities revealed today. The tax department of Hangzhou, the capital city of Zhejiang Province, ordered the live-streaming host to pay about 1.34 billion yuan in unpaid taxes, late fees and fines.
薇娅被罚13.41亿：近日，浙江省杭州市税务局稽查局查明，网络主播黄薇（网名：薇娅）在2019年至2020年期间，通过隐匿个人收入、虚构业务转换收入性质虚假申报等方式偷逃税款6.43亿元，其他少缴税款0.6亿元，依法对黄薇作出税务行政处理处罚决定，追缴税款、加收滞纳金并处罚款共计13.41亿元。
Kaisa Group’s shares fell as much as 14 percent on Monday after the beleaguered Chinese developer resumed trading for the first time since it was deemed in default. Kaisa said it appointed financial and legal advisers after missing multiple offshore debt payments totalling $11.8 billion.
佳兆业官宣百亿美元债违约：停牌近两周后，佳兆业终于公布美元债违约情况并宣布制定债务重组计划。 12月20日上午，停牌多日的佳兆业集团正式复牌，同时还公布了4项已经违约的优先票据，未偿还本金额约117.8亿美元，复牌首日股价一度大跌14%。
Shares of companies controlled by Zhongzhi Enterprise Group founder Xie Zhikun plunged, after the company announced that he died of a heart attack Saturday morning. The company's portfolio covers a broad range of businesses including new energy vehicles, mining, industry, and property. It is involved in six licensed financial institutions and four wealth management companies, including Zhongrong International Trust, which had 765.4 billion yuan of assets as of the end of 2019.
中植系掌门人去世：12月18日，万亿“中植系”实控人解直锟因心梗猝然离世，“中植系”旗下上市公司股价周一开盘悉数下跌。公开资料显示，中植集团旗下有金融投资、并购、财富管理、新金融四大业务板块，核心金融平台包括中融信托、四大财富公司，还有726亿元规模的公募基金以及数百家的私募。
金融市场要闻
The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has moved to amend its regulations on the stock trading connectivity mechanism between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong to ban mainland investors from trading through the northbound legs of the HK-mainland stock link program.
12月17日，证监会就修改《内地与香港股票市场交易互联互通机制若干规定》公开征求意见。自规则实施之日起，香港经纪商不得再为内地投资者新开通沪深股通交易权限。
Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd is joining the rush by global stock markets to enable blank-check organisations to raise funds for buying other companies, but it plans to impose tougher rules than the U.S. and Singapore.
12月17日，香港交易所宣布，联交所公布引入新规则，将在香港设立全新SPAC上市机制，并于2022年1月1日起生效。
最后来看股市收盘情况
Chinese stocks closed lower on Monday with more than 3000 stocks recorded losses. The ChiNext Index fell nearly 3 percent, while the Shanghai Composite lost 1.07 percent, and the Shenzhen Component shed 2.01 percent. The Hang Seng Index also came down 1.93 percent, as the TECH Index notching a record low.
周一A股大跌，创业板指持续下探，跌幅扩大至3%，超3000只股票下跌。沪指跌1.07%，深成指跌2.01%。港股恒生指数收跌1.93%，恒生科技指数跌3.2%续刷历史新低。
财经词汇划重点
LPR (Loan Prime Rate)is the most preferential lending rate offered by a commercial bank to its prime clients, and other lending rates can be offered by adding or subtracting basis points based on it.
贷款市场报价利率是由具有代表性的报价行，根据银行对最优质客户的贷款利率，以公开市场操作利率加点形成的方式报价的基础性的贷款参考利率，各金融机构应主要参考LPR进行贷款定价。
