Feb new loans seen at 1.50 trln yuan vs 4.92 trln yuan in Jan
Feb money supply growth seen at 8.8 yy vs 8.7 in Jan
Feb TSF seen at 2.22 trln yuan vs 6.50 trln yuan in Jan
Loans, money supply data due March 1015

BEIJING, March 8 Reuters China39;s bank lending likely pulled back sharply in February from an alltime high in January due to seasonal factors, a Reuters poll showed, even as the central bank seeks to spur sluggish economic growth and fight deflationary pressures.

Chinese banks are expected to have issued 1.50 trillion yuan 208.52 billion in net new yuan loans last month, down sharply from 4.92 trillion yuan in January, according to the median estimate in the survey of 21 economists.

A pull back in February39;s lending is widely expected as banks tend to scale back lending after a rush to frontload loans at the beginning of the year to win market share.

The timing of the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday, which fell in February this year versus late January in 2023, may also have weakened lending activity last month.

The expected new loan figure would be lower than 1.81 trillion yuan issued in the same month a year earlier.

We expect a typical seasonal moderation in aggregate financing and loans, which could be magnified by the Lunar New Year falling in February, analysts at ING said in a note.

While there should be some support from lending activity to whitelisted property projects, this is unlikely to offset the seasonal effects.

In January, China…