Chinese banks extended a record 1.87 trillion yuan in new loans in March, anticipating a possible economic recovery, a source said.

"The growth is even stronger than January's 1.62 trillion yuan," the source told China Daily yesterday. "The proportion of bill financing and other short-term loans has declined during the period."

"A strong loan growth is reasonable," Dong Xian'an, macro economy analyst with Southwest Securities said. "There are signs of further pickup in economic activity."