It's widely agreed that China needs to get its massive debt problem — estimated at more than three times the size of the economy — under control.
But that effort is also seen as overburdening an important sector, the country's small and medium-sized businesses, which are at the front line of the ongoing trade war with the United States.
Small and medium-sized firms make up the majority of Chinese companies and are major employers but have traditionally faced challenges competing with China's huge, state-owned enterprises for bank loans.
Adding to their importance, smaller firms are often part of intricate global supply chains that play a central role in Chinese exports, and thus vulnerable to the trade conflict with the United States.