The World Bank (WB) is to slash its annual lending to China from about three billion US dollars to some two billion US dollars over the next three years, according to a WB source.

However, the reduction does not represent a reduced commitment to China but a shift of its emphasis to helping the country deal with major difficulties related to reform, Yukon Huang, director of the WB's China Program, was quoted by today's China Daily as saying.

The WB decision was made possible by China's changed situation as the country is now expected to make better use of its own resources and rely less on external borrowing because its interest rates are comparatively low, the English-language newspaper said.

"The shift reflects China's maturation in economic strength and the higher efficiency of lending projects," Huang noted, adding that even at two billion US dollars a year, China will still be among the largest borrowers of the bank and will probably continue to be the largest borrower for investment projects.

Huang went on to say that the World Bank will continue to work with China and will offer more assistance to reform in banking, housing, enterprise and social sectors. (China Daily)