Zhou Xiaochuan stays on as PBoC governor

The governor of the People's Bank of China (PBoC), Zhou Xiaochuan, has been reappointed to the role by the National People's Congress, the Chinese parliament.

Zhou, at 65, has reached the mandatory retirement age in China, but is exempted from the limit thanks to a quirk arising from his membership of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference – a political think-tank – that enables him to stay on longer. Zhou took the helm in December 2002, making him the PBoC's longest-serving governor.

Hui Feng, author of The Rise of the People's Bank of China, published this month, said Zhou is considered as "the most academically capable of the current Chinese leadership, a technocrat with high intellect, diplomacy, sensibility, work ethic and holistic thinking".

In his latest speech, delivered on March 13, Zhou stressed the need for the PBoC to be vigilant in tackling prices, after the latest inflation figures in China were higher than expected. Year-on-year inflation jumped to 3.2% in February, up from 2% in January and the highest level in almost 10 months.

He also emphasised the opportunity to continue developing cross-border activity in the Chinese renminbi, and asserted that the move towards a freely convertible currency will help China develop as an open-market economy.