Central bank balance sheet (中央银行资产负债表)

A central bank balance sheet (中央银行资产负债表 zhōng yāng yín háng zī chǎn fù zhài biǎo) summarizes the financial position of the bank, including assets, liabilities, and equity. A balance sheet (资产负债表 zī chǎn fùz hài biǎo) is a financial statement that reports a company’s assets, liabilities, and shareholders’ equity. Balance as in account balance (账户结余 zhàng hù jié yú). Also see: “central bank” (中央银行 zhōng yāng yín háng) and “balance sheet” (资产负债表 zī chǎn fù zhài biǎo).

Part 1: Breakdown of Words

• “Central bank” (中央银行 zhōng yāng yín háng) derives from:
  • “Central” (中央 zhōng yāng) as in “central government” (中央政府 zhōng yāng zhèng fǔ), or “central air conditioning” (中央空调 zhōng yāng kōng tiáo).
    • “中” (zhōng) as in “China” (中国 zhōng guó), “intermediate” (中级 zhōng jí), “middle” (中间 zhōng jiān), or “Central Europe” (中欧 zhōng ōu).
    • “央” (yāng) as in “beg” (央求 yāng qiú), or “CCTV (China Central Television)” (央视 yāng shì).
  • “Bank” derives from:
    • “银” (yín) as in “silver” (白银 bái yín), “silver-colored” (银色 yín sè), or “silver screen” (银屏 yín píng).
    • “行” (háng) as in “industry” (行业 háng yè), or “rank” (行列 háng liè).
• “Balance sheet” (资产负债表 zī chǎn fùz hài biǎo) derives from:
  • “资产” (zī chǎn) means “assets”, which derives from:
    • “资” (zī) as in “capital” (资本 zī běn), “investment” (投资 tóu zī), or “funds” (资金 zī jīn).
    • “产” (chǎn) as in “production” (生产 shēng chǎn), “product” (产品 chǎn pǐn), or “productivity” (生产力shēng chǎn lì).
  • “负债” (fù zhài) means “liabilities”, which derives from:
    • “负” as in “negative number” (负数 fù shù), or “be responsible for” (负责 fù zé).
    • “债” as in “debt” (债务 zhài wù), or “bond” (债券 zhài quàn).
  • “表” (biǎo) as in “sheet” (表格 biǎo gé), “clock” (钟表 zhōng biǎo), or “indicate” (表示 biǎo shì).