What measures make up China’s largest stimulus package since September 2024—including the PSL rate cut and expanded “Six Networks” support, the 700 billion yuan in additional relending quotas, and the one-year trial of mortgage-interest subsidies for eligible first-time buyers—an

China’s September 29 package is its biggest stimulus push since September 2024, but it is chiefly targeted credit support and a limited homebuyer subsidy—not a broad fiscal rescue. Analysts see it as improving the chances of meeting the 2026 growth target of 4.5%–5%, rather than reversing weak demand or the property slump. 21

• Cheaper infrastructure funding: The central bank cut its one-year pledged supplementary lending (PSL) rate by 25 basis points, from 1.75% to 1.5%, and widened the facility to “Six Networks” infrastructure, including water, power-grid, computing and communications projects. The aim is to bring forward investment by lowering its financing cost. 1
• More targeted credit: It added 700 billion yuan in relending quotas to channel bank lending toward priority borrowers, including technology, smaller businesses and agriculture. A quota makes funding available; it does not guarantee that firms will borrow or spend it. 37
• First-home mortgage aid: From October 1, eligible first-time buyers of homes priced at no more than 1.5 million yuan and measuring no more than 120 square metres can receive a subsidy equivalent to one percentage point of mortgage interest. The enrolment scheme is initially a one-year trial; qualifying borrowers may receive the subsidy for up to five years. That distinction matters: it is not merely one year of interest relief. 1457

The measures should help some households afford a first home and support selected investment, but their narrow eligibility and reliance on willing borrowers limit their reach. Investors were underwhelmed and continued to look for stronger measures to address underlying demand weakness; analysts likewise judged the package unlikely, on its own, to produce a sustained property recovery. 21213

Further fiscal support remains possible, but it has not been established by these announcements. The cautious assessment reflects weak household and business demand, the prolonged housing downturn, and the limits of lowering funding costs when borrowers lack confidence; monetary easing is therefore being directed to selected uses rather than treated as a substitute for broader demand support. 1212