Finance is the lifeblood of the national economy. According to data released by the People's Bank of China on February 13th, the scale of social financing in China increased by 7.22 trillion yuan in the first month of the year, setting a new historical high for the same period and providing strong support for a stable economic start at the beginning of the year. In the first month of 2026, the highlights of the financial report card are prominent: at the end of January, the balance of RMB loans increased by 6.1% year-on-year, the stock of social financing scale increased by 8.2% year-on-year, and the balance of broad money (M2) increased by 9% year-on-year... The upward curves reflect that China's total financial supply is relatively sufficient, actively solving the problem of insufficient effective demand, and creating a suitable monetary and financial environment for economic recovery and improvement. Behind this is the sustained efforts of moderately loose monetary policy. At the beginning of the year, the People's Bank of China introduced multiple monetary and financial policies to support the real economy, including the improvement and innovation of refinancing tools, as well as the implementation of the first structural "interest rate cut" of the year, which strengthened support for key areas such as private enterprises, technological innovation, and green low-carbon. Data shows that at the end of January, the balance of broad money (M2) was 347.19 trillion yuan, with a year-on-year growth rate 0.5 percentage points higher than the previous month and 2 percentage points higher than the same period last year, fully reflecting the moderately loose monetary policy state. At the beginning of the year, we started running, and some major projects landed intensively at the beginning of the year. Many companies seized the opportunity, which is reflected in financial data. In January, China's RMB loans increased by 4.71 trillion yuan, maintaining a reasonable growth rate. Among them, loans from enterprises (institutions) increased by 4.45 trillion yuan, which is the main force behind the increase in loans. To meet the concentrated funding needs at the beginning of the year, financial institutions deploy and exert early efforts around major projects and key areas, ensuring fast credit disbursement and optimal structure at the beginning of the year. From a set of data provided by the People's Bank of China, it can be seen that the planning and layout of the financial system: as of the end of January, the balance of inclusive small and micro loans was 37.16 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11.6%; The balance of medium and long-term loans in the service industry, excluding the real estate industry, was 60.03 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 9.2%, both higher than the growth rate of various loans during the same period. At the beginning of the new year, the Chinese consumer market is also full of enthusiasm: the "trade in" activity for consumer goods is booming, the financial subsidy policy for personal consumption loans is accelerating, and the demand for New Year's goods procurement, cultural tourism travel and other consumption is relatively strong... The continued release of residents' consumption potential supports the steady growth of personal loans. Data shows that in January, household loans in China increased by 456.5 billion yuan, of which short-term loans increased by 109.7 billion yuan. In addition, the consumption trend at the beginning of the year can also be seen from the mobile payment situation. According to transaction data from UnionPay and UnionPay, in January 2026, the number of commodity consumption transactions increased by 16.8% year-on-year, and the number of service consumption transactions increased by 8.6% year-on-year. Among them, the number and amount of transactions in leisure and entertainment scenes increased by 2.8% and 6.6% year-on-year, respectively. How to further stimulate effective credit demand? Financing costs are one of the key concerns for both businesses and residents. The reporter learned from the People's Bank of China that the weighted average interest rate for new loans (in domestic and foreign currencies) issued by enterprises in January was about 3.2%, which was about 20 basis points lower than the same period last year; The weighted average interest rate for newly issued personal housing loans (in domestic and foreign currencies) is 3.1%, which is basically the same as the same period last year. Experts believe that the low operation of financing costs not only reflects the relatively abundant supply of credit at present, but also reflects the effectiveness of reasonable concessions from finance to the real economy, which helps to reduce the burden on enterprise operations and stimulate the vitality and creativity of business entities. Recently, the People's Bank of China held the 2026 Credit Market Work Conference, clarifying the implementation of the incremental policy of structural monetary policy tools, vigorously developing technology finance, green finance, inclusive finance, pension finance, and digital finance, and strengthening financial support in the consumer sector. Financial activities, economic activities. With the support of a moderately loose monetary policy, financial services have great potential and will bring more innovation and growth vitality to the Chinese economy, effectively supporting the opening of the "15th Five Year Plan" and making a good start. (New Society)