Chinese Companies Are Issuing A Lot Of I.O.U.s

Zhang Zhiyang said his architecture firm couldn’t seem to get paid on time. He is now accepting the financial equivalent of i.o.u.s from as many as one-third of his clients.CreditCreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

New York Times: Circulating in China’s Financial System: More Than $200 Billion in I.O.U.s

As the trade war escalates, Beijing needs private companies to pull China’s economy out of its rut. But for some, ready money can be hard to find.

SHENZHEN, China — China was on the cusp of the biggest building boom the world had ever seen when Zhang Zhiyang started his architecture firm. It was 2007, and the money rushed in for contracts to design residential complexes and an exhibition hall.

These days, with China’s economy slowing and his own business dropping off, Mr. Zhang can’t seem to get paid on time. He is now accepting the financial equivalent of i.o.u.s from as many as one-third of his clients instead of cash.

“It wasn’t like this before,” he said. But, he added, “it’s better than nothing.”

China’s trade war with the United States has escalated in recent days, posing a growing threat to an already slowing economy. Beijing needs private businesses like Mr. Zhang’s and his clients to help rekindle growth and provide paychecks to Chinese workers.

But many of those private businesses are short of cash. Instead, more than $200 billion in i.o.u.s — known in the dry world of finance as commercial acceptance bills — are floating around the Chinese financial system, according to government data.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: China's economy can take a $200 billion hit, but it is going to be painful. As for China's property developers, here is an easy prediction, many of them are going to go bust.