Source: asiainsurancereview.com

A State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang has decided to provide wider farm insurance for 13 major grain production provinces, in order to help farmers fend off risks and stabilise income from planting rice and wheat.

The insurance will cover the costs of seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, land, labour, and losses from natural disasters, plant diseases, and insect pests, among others. The insurance for those planting corn will cover losses due to price and output fluctuations.

The meeting decided to provide a one-time subsidy to farmers growing major grains to cushion them from sharp price increases of farming supplies and stabilise their income. The total subsidy amount will be around CNY20bn ($3.1bn).

The meeting urged financial institutions to cut fees further to help micro and small enterprises and individual business owners lower their costs.