The Agricultural Development Bank of China (ADBC) held the 2020 Annual Work Conference from Jan 18 to 20 to summarize the work of the whole year in 2019 and arrange the key tasks in 2020.

The meeting acknowledged ADBC's stable and progressive performance in 2019 and the progress made in high quality development and modernization drive. ADBC has served agriculture, rural areas and farmers with more prominent functions and stronger development momentum. The total asset of the bank reached more than 7 trillion RMB and the loan balance was 5.59 trillion RMB at the end of 2019, rising 455.2 billon RMB over the beginning of the year. The asset quality of the bank was improved continuously and the NPL achieved "double reduction" with the ratio of 0.61% at the end of 2019, which was the lowest among all national financial institutions.   

The meeting pointed out that 2019 witnessed ADBC's fruitful performance and achievements, insisting on taking the food security, rural revitalization strategy and poverty alleviation as its core mission and main direction. In 2019 ADBC granted loans totaling 1.79 trillion RMB, rising 8.86%. The average interest rate of the new loans was 4.9%, 113 basis point lower than the average level of national financial institutions, slashing the bank’s profits of 6.8 billion RMB for the benefit of agriculture. ADBC granted loans amounting to 661.9 billion RMB for the grain, cotton and edible oil, with 298.2 billion for purchasing products, which procured 360.7 billion jin of grain and edible oil, with 98.5 billion jin year-on-year growth. The amount of 404.5 billion RMB loans was granted to poverty alleviation, with 15.2billion year-on-year growth, to make another success in serving poverty alleviation. The amount of 627.2 RMB billion infrastructure loans was granted to support medium and long term projects of agriculture and rural areas. The amount of 15.6 billion RMB loans for whole live pig industry chain was granted to respond actively to the central government's requirements to speed up the pig production. ADBC introduced guidance and policy to support Yangtze River Economic Belt and ecological protection of Yellow River Basin and granted 177.1 billion RMB (186% year-on-year growth) loans and 25.6 billion RMB loans respectively. The international settlement volume reached 17.4 billion USD, with 57.2% year-on-year growth. ADBC has been the third largest issuer and the largest "agriculture, rural areas and farmers"-related issuer in China's bond market and issued more than 1 trillion RMB bonds for 5 consecutive years.

The meeting required that ADBC should further focus on main responsibility and business, innovate models, improve services and give full play to the role of a policy bank in supporting agriculture in 2020. Firstly, to resolutely win the battle of poverty alleviation, ADBC needs to complete the mission of poverty alleviation on schedule and to support relocating the poor, industrial poverty alleviation, consumption for poverty alleviation to ensure people to have enough to eat and wear, and that they have security in education, health services and housing. Secondly，to fully service national food security and effective supply of important agricultural products, ADBC needs to further improve the development arrangement for grain and edible oil credit business, increase the support to the whole industry chain of important agricultural products as live pig, and hold the bottom line of national food security. Thirdly, to fully service modernization of rural areas, ADBC needs to stick to the policy orientation, adhere to market-oriented operation, actively search the effective development models and meet the funding needs of rural infrastructure and public services. Fourthly, to fully service the revitalization of rural industry, ADBC needs to support the income-generating agribusinesses, lift the industrial, productive and operational system of modern agriculture, effectively foster the localized industry and the new industry and business undertaking, and boost the integration of rural industry and green development. Fifthly, to fully service the national regional development, ADBC needs to link closely to the reality of local development, enhance the strategic cooperation with the local governments, enterprises and financial institutions, and continuously improve the support to Yangtze River protection and ecological protection of Yellow River Basin.