China cut interest rates for the third time in six months amid a worse-than-expected economic slowdown, as authorities scramble to ease the heavy debt burdens of companies and governments. The People’s Bank of China said Sunday it would shave a quarter of a percentage point off benchmark lending and deposit rates, effective Monday. The move comes as senior Chinese officials are growing more fearful that the mountain of debt from the rapid expansion of credit over the past few years is weighing on efforts to pick up the world’s second-largest economy. In one of the starkest official warnings about China’s growing debt woes, the PBOC said in its monetary-policy report Friday that the “rising debt size is forcing China to use a lot of resources in repaying and rolling over debt” while limiting the room for further fiscal expansion. The central bank is also considering a credit-easing tool […]