China eases forex loan rules to boost exporters, cut red tape

China's foreign exchange regulator has rolled out new rules to ease access to domestic foreign-currency loans, a move aimed at streamlining financing for domestic exporters and reducing administrative burdens on businesses.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) issued the notice on further improving the management of domestic foreign exchange loans on Friday, with the new provisions set to come into effect on Oct 1, 2026.

Under the revised framework, eligible domestic foreign-currency loans backed by goods or services trade exports may now be directly credited to businesses' current foreign exchange settlement accounts. Previously, such loans were subject to more restrictive account management.

The notice also simplifies forex settlement and repayment procedures. Loan settlement is now managed based on the underlying transaction background, rather than through blanket restrictions.

Repayment requirements will also be streamlined. Borrowers can now purchase foreign exchange directly at banks to repay domestic forex loans by presenting authentic supporting documents, eliminating prior administrative approval requirements.

Li Liuyang, head of forex research at the China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC), said the changes are expected to deliver tangible benefits to domestic exporters.

Under the previous rules, domestic foreign-currency loans were generally not allowed to be settled into the Chinese yuan, but the new regulation extends the settlement eligibility to forex loans backed by goods or services exports, where export proceeds serve as the primary repayment source, he explained.

The move is part of China's broader efforts to support the real economy and facilitate cross-border trade.

The notice is also consistent with a series of incremental reforms introduced by SAFE in recent years, including the expansion of cross-border trade facilitation pilots and the relaxation of forex settlement rules for multinational corporations.

The U.S. dollar advanced in late trading on Friday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, gained 0.05 percent to 99.917 at 15:00. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro lost to 1.1531 dollars from 1.1535 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound was up to 1.3482 dollars from 1.3476 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 158.90 Japanese yen, lower than 158.93 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar increased to 0.8082 Swiss francs from 0.8040 Swiss francs, and it added to 1.4019 Canadian dollars from 1.3996 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar advanced to 9.5193 Swedish kronor from 9.5189 Swedish kronor.