Reuters reports that according to data released by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), China’s new bank loans unexpectedly rose in May from the previous month, even as the central bank has sought to contain rising debt in the world’s second-largest economy.

Chinese banks extended 1.5 trillion yuan ($234.76 billion) in new yuan loans in May, up from 1.47 trillion yuan in April and beating analysts’ expectations of 1.41 trillion yuan.

The tally also was higher than the 1.48 trillion yuan issued the same month a year earlier, when policymakers rolled out unprecedented measures to deal with the shock from the coronavirus crisis.

Growth in outstanding yuan loans eased to 12.2%, the slowest pace since February 2020, and compared with 12.3% in April. Analysts had expected 12.2% growth.

Broad M2 money supply grew 8.3% from a year earlier, above estimates of 8.1% forecast in the Reuters poll, which matched the pace in April.