China's central bank reveals details of 3-phased plan to cut RRR

China's central bank on Tuesday issued details of the three phases in which it plans to cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for county-level rural commercial banks, a step it had announced on May 6. This month, the People's Bank of China said the RRR cut aimed to free up about 280 billion yuan ($40.53 billion) for such banks, in a bid to help companies that are struggling during an economic slowdown.

It added that the reduction would be spread over three phases, on May 15, June 17 and July 15. On Tuesday, the PBOC said it had cut the RRR by 100 basis points on May 15 as part of the planned reductions.

It will next cut the RRR by another 100 basis points on June 17 and lower the ratio for county-level rural commercial banks to 8% on July 15, the central bank added in a statement.