Local governments raised 364.2 billion yuan (about $54.36 billion) through bond issuance in February, down from 418 billion yuan in January, data showed on March 20.

In the first two months of the year, bond issuance of local governments totaled 782.1 billion yuan, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF).

By the end of February, outstanding local government debt reached 19.14 trillion yuan, below the official ceiling of 24.08 trillion yuan set for the year.

Chinese authorities have pledged to rigorously control risks in local government bonds and implicit debt while using bond issuance to finance infrastructure projects and improve weak areas.

Last year, local authorities raised a total of 4.17 trillion yuan via bond issuance, down from 4.36 trillion yuan in 2017, MOF data showed.

China will issue 2.15 trillion yuan of special local government bonds this year, an increase of 800 billion yuan over last year, says a government work report.

“This is designed to both provide funding for key projects and create conditions for better forestalling and defusing local governments’ debt risks,” the report says.