China's entrepreneurial hub of Wenzhou has launched its own index to track private lending, with China seeking to provide greater transparency in a city known for its shadow-banking practices, the Shanghai Securities News said on Saturday. The Wenzhou Index, released by the Wenzhou Municipal Government Finance Office, will be updated weekly and will complement a similar index announced by the central bank in May, the official newspaper reported.

The wealthy coastal city of Wenzhou plans to channel private money into local businesses through formal institutions - mainly small credit firms - to stem a surge in bad loans as private firms face difficulties in getting loans from state-owned banks, local media reported last month. Wenzhou is also looking at a plan of a trial that would allow individuals to make direct overseas investments in yuan. The first Wenzhou Index released on Friday showed private financing interest rates in the last week of November at 21.43 percent.

Copyright Reuters, 2012