Goldman: China Debt Load Unknown, But Could Be Much Higher Than Thought

Is China debt getting to be a larger, more unmanageable risk? Is the task of modeling risk contagion growing amid financial obfuscation?

China’s reliance on credit has “deepened significantly” as the nation’s debt load is far higher than people think, a new Goldman Sachs report opined. How much credit has already been extended to Chinese households and corporates? That is difficult to determine, stated the June 6 report titled "Follow the 'money' in China… to measure credit," particularly as government numbers are in question and the lack of visibility is making risk modeling difficult. Part of the problem is due to Chinese banks engaging in gaming the regulatory system, Goldman noted.