On December 1, the People's Bank of China (China's central bank) and Hebei Province-based Chinese steelmaker Hebei Iron and Steel Company Ltd signed an agreement on strategic financial collaboration worth RMB 30 billion ($4.5 billion) focused on supply chain issues.
The China's central bank and Hebei Iron and Steel had previously inked a strategic collaboration agreement in June 2008 worth RMB 48 billion ($7 billion). China's central bank is currently the arranger for Hebei Steel's main business, including international clearance, trade financing, credit operations, project loans, trust financing and loans for mergers and acquisitions.