Shandong Governor Guo Shuqing dismisses talk he will be China's next central bank boss

Shandong Governor Guo Shuqing yesterday brushed off speculation he will be China's next central bank chief.

Asked about the possibility of the appointment, Guo, a former China Securities Regulatory Commission chairman, said only: "That was misrepresentation", without elaborating.

Guo made the remark during a panel discussion on the sidelines of the National People's Congress. Speculation has been rife in financial circles that reform-minded Guo would replace Zhou Xiaochuan , 67, at the helm of the People's Bank of China after the annual session of the NPC.

Guo is widely regarded as a knowledgeable and bold technocrat and a rising political star, and placing him at the head of the central bank could result in a shift in monetary policy direction.

While head of the commission in 2013, Guo was made governor of Shandong , one of the mainland's most populated provinces, an appointment seen as grooming him for a more important position. He was credited with a series of major reforms of the mainland's stock market.

Between late 2011 and March 2013, he strongly advocated making a head-to-toe change on the arcane A-share market.