China's central bank pledged to maintain loose monetary policy to support the economy and said it would ensure sustainable credit growth without resorting to heavy-handed quotas to rein in a lending spree.
In a statement that analysts said was intended to calm skittish markets, the People's Bank of China Vice Governor Su Ning said the central bank "will unswervingly continue to apply appropriately loose monetary policy and consolidate the economic recovery momentum."
A man walks in front of an electronic board showing stock information at a brokerage house in Shanghai July 30, 2009.
The statement was posted on the bank's website after Wednesday's 5 percent fall in the Chinese stock market, its biggest daily drop in eight months, which had been sparked in part by worries that Beijing would restrict bank lending.
