(Yicai Global) March 30 - Shanghai banks had granted loans of up to CNY65.7 billion (USD9.3 billion) at an interest rate of around 3 percent to 4,502 companies as of March 15 to aid them in their fight against the Covid-19 epidemic, an official with the branch of China's central bank in the eastern financial hub said at a press conference today.

Some 98 percent of banking and insurance institutions have restarted work, and their overall operations have held steady since the pandemic's outbreak, added Sun Hui, the People's Bank of China's Shanghai deputy director.

Editor: Ben Armour