Trump asks World Bank not to lend money to China

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday called the World Bank to stop lending money to China, one day after the institution adopted a borrowing plan to Beijing over Washington’s objections.

On Thursday, the World Bank  adopted a plan to aid China with $1 billion to $1.5 billion in low-interest loans annually through June 2025. The plan calls for lending to “gradually decline” from the former five-year average of $1.8 billion.

“Why is the World Bank loaning money to China? Can this be possible? China has plenty of money, and if they don’t, they create it. STOP!” Trump tweeted.

“World Bank lending to China has fallen sharply and will continue to reduce as part of our agreement with all our shareholders including the United States,” the World Bank said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

“We eliminate lending as countries get richer.”

The World Bank loaned China $1.3 billion in the financial 2019 year, which ended on June 30, a fall from around $2.4 billion in financial 2017.

But the decline in the World Bank’s loans to China is not swift enough for the Trump administration, which has argued that Beijing is too wealthy for international aid.

Source: Reuters