China central bank warns against 'Minsky Moment' due to excessive optimism

Reuters

Published Oct 19, 2017 12:28AM ET

China central bank warns against 'Minsky Moment' due to excessive optimism

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will fend off risks from excessive optimism that could lead to a "Minsky Moment", central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said on Thursday, adding that corporate debt levels are relatively high and household debt is rising too quickly.

A Minsky Moment is a sudden collapse of asset prices after a long period of growth, sparked by debt or currency pressures. The theory is named after economist Hyman Minsky.

China will control risks from sudden adjustments to asset bubbles and will seriously deal with disguised debt of local government financing vehicles, Zhou said.

The People's Bank of China governor was speaking on the sidelines of China's 19th Communist Party congress.