China's top diplomat meets Pakistani army chief

China's top diplomat Wang Yi met with Pakistani Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir in Beijing on Thursday.

Wang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, said the Pakistani military stands as a staunch defender of national interests and a firm supporter of the China-Pakistan friendship, expressing expectations for the Pakistani military's continued contributions to bilateral relations.

China and Pakistan have extended unwavering mutual support on issues concerning each other's core interests, Wang said, noting that China stands ready to work with Pakistan in implementing the important consensus reached by the leaders of two countries and further deepening the all-weather strategic cooperation to deliver greater benefits to the two peoples and contribute to regional peace and stability.

China supports Pakistan's resolute efforts to combat terrorism in all forms and hopes the Pakistani military will continue to make all-out efforts to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions in Pakistan, Wang said.

Munir said developing friendly cooperation with China is a consensus of the entire Pakistani society, and that Pakistan sincerely appreciates China's longstanding support for its socio-economic development.

The Pakistani military will continue taking all necessary measures to safeguard the safety of Chinese personnel, projects, and institutions within its territory, and stands ready to actively strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation between the two countries, he said.

China's outstanding aggregate social financing -- the total amount of financing to the real economy -- reached 442.12 trillion yuan (about 63.4 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2025, up 8.3 percent year on year, central bank data showed on Thursday.

The country's aggregate social financing stood at 35.6 trillion yuan (about 5.1 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2025, up by 3.34 trillion yuan (about 479 billion U.S. dollars) from the year 2024, said the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank.

According to the data, the M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased 8.5 percent year on year to 340.29 trillion yuan (about 48.8 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of December.

In addition, outstanding yuan loans stood at 271.91 trillion yuan (about 39 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of 2025, up 6.4 percent year on year.