China says appoints new cabinet position

BEIJING, Mar 6 (Reuters) China has appointed former Vice Finance Minister Lou Jiwei as Vice Secretary of the country's cabinet, the central government said today.

Lou would take up the ministerial level position within the State Council, according to a statement posted on the government's official Web site (www.gov.cn).

The statement did not elaborate.

Financial sources close to the State Council told Reuters late last month that Lou was likely to replace Hu Xiaolian as chairman of Central SAFE Investment Ltd, also known as Central Huijin.

Hu would remain in charge of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), China's foreign exchange regulator, which currently manages the reserves, according to the sources.

Analysts have speculated that Lou could eventually head a new agency the government is expected to set up to manage part of the country's 1.07 trillion dollar in foreign exchange reserves, the world's largest.

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