China to keep fiscal support for supply-side reform

BEIJING - China will maintain fiscal support for supply-side structural reform next year, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) on Thursday.

The MOF will help cutting industrial capacity, reducing the housing inventory, lowering leverage and cutting corporate costs, said a statement released after a meeting chaired by Finance Minister Xiao Jie.

Redundancies and loss-making "zombie companies" were highlighted in the statement.

The meeting agreed on support for the real economy, agricultural reform, poverty alleviation, technological innovation and manufacturing upgrades in 2017.

The MOF reiterated China's proactive fiscal policy and said it will expand expenditure to help hold the economy within a reasonable range.

More tax breaks and less administrative fees will be extended for businesses, the statement said.

Other issues discussed included taxation reforms, management of local government debt and international cooperation.