Bank of China to keep "reasonable" pace of lending

BEIJING, March 3 (Reuters) - Bank of China (3988.HK) (601988.SS) will maintain a reasonable pace of lending this year, Li Lihui, the president of the country's fourth-largest lender by assets, said in remarks reported on Wednesday.

Li told the official Xinhua news agency that Bank of China would pay particular attention to credit risk with a view to promoting the bank's long-term, sustainable growth.

His comments chime with the directives of the China Regulatory Banking Commission, which has lowered its 2010 lending target to about 7.5 trillion yuan from a record 9.6 trillion yuan last year, when banks rushed to pump up growth at the government's behest.

"In 2009 the pace of lending was not normal. It was meant to meet special demands in a special time of financial crisis," Xinhua paraphrased Li as saying.

The CBRC has repeatedly called on banks to lend at a more regular rhythm and to strengthen their risk management in order to prevent an increase in bad loans. (Reporting by Aileen Wang and Alan Wheatley; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)