BEIJING — China saw a lower debt-to-asset ratio at centrally-administered State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the first quarter of 2020.

The average debt-to-asset ratio of central SOEs stood at 65.6 percent by the end of March, down 0.1 percentage points from the same period last year, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) told a press conference on April 10.

"The overall solvency of central SOEs remained stable in the first three months," said SASAC spokesman Peng Huagang, noting the flat 40.3-percent average ratio of interest-bearing liability to assets.

China has set a timetable for SOEs deleveraging as part of its efforts to defuse financial risks. The average debt-to-asset ratio of SOEs should be reduced by 2 percentage points by the end of 2020, compared with that at the end of 2017.