中國加強資本控制措施

The Chinese government intensified its efforts to stem capital flight from the world’s second-largest economy on Thursday, as it simultaneously moved to slow renminbi outflows and restrict gold imports.

中國政府在周四加緊阻止資本外逃，同時采取行動減緩人民幣流出和限制黃金進口。

Curbs on international renminbi payments and gold imports are the latest in a string of capital control measures intended to relieve downward pressure on the currency and protect dwindling foreign exchange reserves. Days earlier, China’s cabinet circulated draft rules restricting large foreign acquisitions, while its foreign exchange regulator began to vet outward remittances as low as $5m, compared with a previous threshold of $50m.

為減輕人民幣下行壓力，保護日益減少的外匯儲備，中國政府出臺了一系列資本控制措施，最新的舉措包括遏制人民幣國際支付和限制黃金進口。幾天前，中國國務(wù)院通報限制大規(guī)模海外收購的草案，外匯監(jiān)管機構(gòu)已開始審查低至500萬美元的外匯匯款，此前門檻為5000萬美元。

The People’s Bank of China will restrict net renminbi transfers by China-domiciled companies to 30 per cent of shareholder’s equity, according to a document seen by the Financial Times. Previously, there was no limit on the value of such transfers, which were encouraged by Beijing as part of its larger effort to internationalise the renminbi.

據(jù)英國《金融時報》看到的一份文件，中國央行(PBoC)將內(nèi)地企業(yè)人民幣轉(zhuǎn)移凈額限制在股東權(quán)益的30%。此前這類轉(zhuǎn)移并無額度限制，作為人民幣全球化更大努力的一部分，還受到中國政府的鼓勵。

Cross-border renminbi payments out of the country hit a record high of Rmb1.7tn ($246.7bn) in the third quarter against only Rmb970bn in inflows, according to central bank data. Authorities previously took a more permissive approach towards renminbi outflows because the accumulation of the currency offshore allows its use for trade and investment outside China’s borders.

根據(jù)中國央行數(shù)據(jù)，第三季度人民幣凈流出達到創(chuàng)紀錄的1.7萬億元人民幣(2467億美元)，而流入僅9700億元人民幣。相關(guān)部門此前對人民幣流出態(tài)度較寬松，因為離岸人民幣的積累可用于境外貿(mào)易和投資。

In a parallel measure, bankers and traders told the Financial Times that some gold importers have had difficulty obtaining approval to bring in gold as the weakening renminbi raises Chinese investors’ interest in the metal.

銀行從業(yè)人員和交易商向英國《金融時報》表示，一些黃金進口商已很難獲準引進黃金，而人民幣日益疲軟提高了中國投資者對黃金的興趣。

The renminbi has slipped 5.8 per cent against the greenback this year, putting it on track for its biggest annual decline on record.

今年人民幣兌美元下滑了5.8%，將創(chuàng)下有史以來最大年度跌幅紀錄。

“All these measures are taken in order to strengthen control over capital outflows and check growing expectations for renminbi depreciation,” said Wang Jun, economist at the China Center for International Economic Exchange in Beijing. “Under the circumstances, it’s the only option. We’re losing a lot of foreign reserves.”

中國國際經(jīng)濟交流中心(China Center for International Economic Exchange)經(jīng)濟學(xué)家王軍表示：“這些措施都是為了加強對資本流出的控制，并抑制對人民幣貶值不斷增長的預(yù)期。在這種情況下，這是唯一的選擇。我們失去了大量外匯儲備。”

After reaching almost $4tn in early 2014, Beijing’s forex reserves have fallen about 25 per cent. One Beijing-based money manager said the authorities were “putting all of their fingers in the dam”. “My sense is that they are going line-by-line to reduce outflows,” added a Hong Kong currency strategist.

中國的外匯儲備在2014年初達到近4萬億美元，現(xiàn)已下降約25%。北京一位貨幣經(jīng)理表示，有關(guān)部門“把所有手指頭都用來堵住大壩”。香港一位貨幣策略師也表示：“我感到他們正慢慢地減少流出。”

China imported about 905 tonnes of gold in the first nine months of this year, according to export data from Hong Kong, Switzerland, Australia and the UK. Much of that is normally re-exported as jewellery.

據(jù)香港、瑞士、澳大利亞和英國出口數(shù)據(jù)，今年頭9個月中國進口了約905噸黃金，其中絕大部分通常作為珠寶再出口。

In 2013 three foreign banks — HSBC, Standard Chartered and ANZ — were awarded licences to import gold, which the government controls via the quarterly quota system. A year later, the PBoC allowed the Shanghai Gold Exchange to set up an international board to open the market to foreign investors.

2013年，中國向三家外資銀行——匯豐銀行(HSBC)、渣打銀行(Standard Chartered)和澳新銀行(ANZ)授予了黃金進口許可證。中國通過季度配額制度對黃金進口實行控制。一年后，中國央行批準上海金交所設(shè)立國際板，向外國投資者開放了市場。

This year the SGE also launched a daily gold-pricing auction, similar to the process run in London between banks. “It’s like one step forward and three steps backwards,” one international banker said about the latest import restrictions.

今年，上海金交所還推出了上海金集中定價合約——類似于倫敦在銀行之間的黃金定價方法。“這就像前進一步，倒退三步，”一位國際銀行家在談到最新的黃金進口限制時表示。

Chinese capital control measures have traditionally focused on tightening approvals for converting renminbi to dollars in China’s onshore market, then transferring those dollars abroad.

中國資本控制措施傳統(tǒng)上聚焦于控制人民幣在中國國內(nèi)市場兌換為美元并轉(zhuǎn)移至國外。

The State Administration for Foreign Exchange has given oral guidance to foreign banks in recent days, instructing them to apply for permission to buy foreign exchange for corporate clients needing to make dividend payments or repay shareholder loans, according to people familiar with the instructions.

知情人士表示，中國國家外匯管理局(SAFE)最近對外資銀行發(fā)布了口頭指導(dǎo)，要求它們對需要支付股息或償還股東貸款而購匯的企業(yè)客戶進行審批。

But the latest move by the PBoC concerns cross-border renminbi remittance. Once renminbi exits mainland China into the offshore market — which has emerged since 2010 as China has pushed to internationalise the currency — conversion to foreign exchange is unregulated.

但中國央行的最新舉措關(guān)系到跨境人民幣的匯兌。一旦人民幣從中國內(nèi)地進入離岸市場——人民幣離岸市場出現(xiàn)于中國開始推動人民幣國際化的2010年——兌換外匯就不受監(jiān)管了。

The new curbs on outflows are likely to deal a further blow to the offshore renminbi market, where liquidity has already been tightening. Renminbi deposits in Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea and Taiwan fell 30 per cent between August 2015 and the end of September this year, according to data tracked by HSBC.

這種遏制資本外流的新舉措可能會進一步打擊離岸人民幣市場，后者的流動性已經(jīng)在緊縮當中。匯豐追蹤的數(shù)據(jù)顯示，從2015年8月到今年9月底，香港、新加坡、韓國和臺灣的人民幣存款下降了30%。

When investors or companies resort to the offshore market to sell renminbi for dollars, it does not immediately trigger foreign-currency outflows from the mainland. But it does create indirect outflow pressure.

當投資者或者企業(yè)依賴離岸市場用人民幣購買美元的時候，它不會直接引發(fā)外匯流出內(nèi)地，但它的確產(chǎn)生了間接的美元外流壓力。

Heavy offshore renminbi selling can cause divergence between the onshore and offshore exchange rates. But the gap between two exchange rates eventually narrows due to arbitrage by banks and companies with access to both markets. These transactions involve transferring US dollars out of the onshore market.

離岸人民幣大幅拋售可能導(dǎo)致國內(nèi)外匯率出現(xiàn)差異。但由于同時進入兩個市場的銀行和企業(yè)的套利交易，兩種匯率之間的差距最終會收窄。這些交易包括將美元轉(zhuǎn)移出在岸市場。

“It’s part of the continued monitoring of the channels and the more stringent documentation requirements,” said a second foreign exchange strategist in Hong Kong. “The barriers just keep going up,”

香港另一位外匯策略師表示：“這是持續(xù)監(jiān)控上述渠道以及更為嚴格的文件要求的一部分。壁壘持續(xù)增高。”

Additional reporting by Ma Nan, Wan Li, Lucy Hornby and Jennifer Hughes

Ma Nan、萬麗、韓碧如(Lucy Hornby)和珍妮弗•休斯(Jennifer Hughes)補充報道