Commentary by Chi Lo, greater China senior economist at BNP Paribas Asset Management in Hong Kong
Lo was speaking in a Bloomberg TV interview earlier and commented that the days where the Chinese central bank governor being the center of reformist energy are gone.
And it boils down to Chinese president Xi Jinping's efforts to centralise control, which would mean that it doesn't really matter who takes charge of the helm at the PBOC.
"It's very clear Beijing's policy direction is that it wants to centralise all departments, ministries, officials and governors to Beijing's central direction. No matter whether or not the person is very liberalised, he or she won't be able to go outside the framework Beijing has already set", Lo argues.
China's top legislature is set to vote on 19 March for a new governor to replace current governor Zhou - who is set to retire at the end of this month.
