The State Council Information Office announced the event in a statement on Wednesday. Finance Minister Lan Fo’an will introduce moves to strengthen fiscal policy to shore up growth and answer questions from reporters, according to the notice.
China’s CSI 300 Index pared losses on the news. The country’s 30-year government bond futures erased gains of as much as 0.8% to trade little changed on speculation the nation may announce fiscal stimulus at the briefing. The offshore yuan extended a gain to trade 0.2% stronger.
The announcement came as China’s world-beating stock rally lost steam after its economic planning agency announced weaker-than-expected stimulus measures in the government’s first briefing following a weeklong holiday.
Stock investors have looked for greater fiscal spending to arrest a slowdown that threatens to put the country’s target of about 5% growth out of reach.
“This is a high-profile briefing as fiscal policy has been a focus of the market,” said Bruce Pang, chief economist for Greater China at Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. “Only with the spending by the MOF can projects announced by the NDRC be rolled out and monetary easing have an impact on the real economy,” he said, referring to China’s economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission.
Banks including Morgan Stanley and HSBC Holdings Plc expect 2 trillion yuan ($283 billion) in stimulus, while Citigroup Inc. put the amount at 3 trillion yuan.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday vowed to “listen to the voice of the market” when formulating economic policies, in a nod to the concerns of the private sector and investors. Beijing is seeking to shore up confidence after the economy grew at its slowest pace in five quarters.