China's regional banks move quicker to shed bad real estate debt

HONG KONG -- China's regional banks are moving faster than big institutions in disposing of nonperforming real estate loans, while the government urges them to lend more to support a weak housing market. Bank of Zhengzhou in Henan province announced on Wednesday that it had agreed to sell assets worth 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) to an asset management company mostly funded by the provincial government and state-owned enterprises.