On August 29, China Construction Bank held its interim results briefing for 2025. Addressing concerns about net interest margin (NIM), Chief Financial Officer Sheng Lirong disclosed that the second quarter NIM stood at 1.4%. "From a longitudinal perspective, it has narrowed quarter-on-quarter, but from a horizontal peer comparison standpoint, we continue to maintain a leading position among comparable peers," he stated.
Regarding market concerns about future NIM trends, Sheng Lirong pointed out that LPR cuts and deposit rate adjustments have lagging effects. "Since loan pricing adjusts relatively faster than deposits, NIM will continue to face certain downward pressure going forward." However, he emphasized that the central bank is continuously improving the monetary policy framework, guiding loan rate reductions to support the real economy while emphasizing symmetry between asset-side and liability-side rate cuts, using institutional mechanisms to guide liability-side rate reductions. Additionally, since the first half of this year, the central bank has been more prudent in its use of interest rate policy tools, increasingly utilizing structural monetary policy instruments to guide banks to strengthen support for key sectors.
Based on comprehensive assessment, Sheng Lirong stated: "Overall, we believe the magnitude of quarterly NIM decline will gradually narrow. We are also confident that through active management, we can continue to maintain our leading NIM position among comparable peers."