Taiwan's central bank may follow China and order domestic lenders to set aside more deposits as reserves to curb loan growth and cool surging property and stock prices, analysts at Citigroup Inc. and other companies said.
The Central Bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan) asked lenders late Monday to submit data on mortgage lending by March 11, and the financial regulator has told banks to tighten lending procedures and ensure the quality of home loans.
Taiwan policymakers may decide to rein in credit growth. Home loans soared to a record $155 billion in January.
China raised its reserve-requirement ratio by half a percentage point in January and February. "A strong required reserve ratio hike could send a strong signal to cool down asset prices and reduce liquidity," said Cheng Cheng-mount, a Citigroup economist based in Taipei."
