Appointed new head of the Chinese Communist Party committee at the Central Bank of China

The current director of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Pan Gongsheng, has been appointed as the new head of the Chinese Communist Party committee at the central bank of China, the institution announced Monday.

Pan Gongsheng is expected to be appointed as central bank governor soon, something that usually follows party committee appointments, financial industry sources told the Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post (SCMP).

The People’s Bank of China confirmed that Pan will replace Guo Shuqing, number two of the central bank and former banking and insurance regulator, a body recently absorbed by the new supervisory body of the financial sector, according to a statement.

The current governor of the Chinese central bank, Yi Gang, also resigned as deputy secretary of the Chinese Communist Party committee at the institution, the same note indicated.

The sources cited by the SCMP also assured that Guo Shuqing and Yi Gang, 66 and 65 years, respectively, must reform, after being appointed to the non-legislative Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in March.

According to Pan Gongsheng’s official resume, the 59-year-old executive has a PhD in economics from Peking University and was a visiting professor at the University of Cambridge, UK, in 1997 and 1998.

Pan worked at the state-owned Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China before being appointed deputy governor of China’s central bank, a position he has held since 2012.

As head of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, Pan Gongsheng managed to “keep the renminbi exchange rate stable overall, which made him an attractive choice for the position” of central bank governor, the finance professor told SCMP. from Peking University. Zhao Xijun.

“Stabilizing the Chinese economy, increasing support for the real economy and dealing with the impact of the US-led ‘risk mitigation strategy’ on supply chains will be challenging,” Zhao added.

China’s economic recovery after the end of the zero-covid policy seems to be running out of steam, with the renminbi’s exchange rates against the US dollar near the lowest level since 2007.