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The credit risk of Chinese households: A micro-level assessment

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  • Funke, Michael
  • Sun, Rongrong
  • Zhu, Linxu

Abstract

Household borrowing in China has increased considerably in recent years, raising concerns about the household sector's vulnerability and implications for the stability of the financial system. We construct a number of granular debt-burden indicators at the level of individual Chinese households and calculate the share of households that are financially vulnerable using the three available waves (2011, 2013 and 2015) of China's Household Finance Survey. Overall loan-to-value (LTV) ratios appear safe and sound at first glance, but closer scrutiny reveals that Chinese households in the lowest income quintile face high vulnerability and struggle to meet their debt commitments. Our stress tests suggest that Chinese households in higher quintiles, despite the huge increase in house-hold indebtedness, are not particularly vulnerable to declining incomes or falling house prices.

Suggested Citation

  • Funke, Michael & Sun, Rongrong & Zhu, Linxu, 2018. "The credit risk of Chinese households: A micro-level assessment," BOFIT Discussion Papers 12/2018, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:bofitp:bdp2018_012
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D10 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - General
    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages

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