(Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase & Co. and ICBC Standard Plc are cutting funding to trade in distressed metals in China, Bloomberg News reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The report said that the lenders withdrew after the emergence of a liquidity crisis at the largest trader Mike Metal International Group Ltd.
The report added that the credit lines of at least three Chinese metal trading companies have been frozen or reduced by any of the banks in recent weeks. (https://bloom.bg/3RNBCjL)
Both JPMorgan (NYSE:) and ICBC Standard Bank have financing relationships with Maike.
The report said it was not clear whether the banks’ withdrawal from the Chinese metals market was a temporary freeze, while they assess their situation, or a permanent decline.
JP Morgan declined to comment, while Industrial and Commercial Bank of China did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Mike Metal International said last month that it was seeking help from the government and financial institutions to mitigate liquidity problems caused by measures aimed at curbing the COVID-19 outbreak.
Reuters reported last month that the shutdowns in Shanghai and Xi’an affected Maike’s upstream and downstream businesses, halting deliveries and transportation, as well as delaying the issuance of some financial documents.
