Qi Wang, a CIO for wealth management at UOB Kay Hian, says he is "not that pessimistic" about the Chinese economy.

As China directs its large financial institutions to help revive and rebalance a struggling stock market, analysts see merit in the plan but are sceptical it will stimulate a recovery.

China oversaw its largest-ever wave of rural bank mergers last year, a Reuters review of official data showed, but analysts ...