Monetary Statistics for August 2009

According to statistics published today (Wednesday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, total deposits with authorized institutions increased slightly by 0.2% in August 2009. Hong Kong-dollar deposits declined by 0.5% during the month as the contraction in time deposits exceeded the rise in demand and savings deposits. Foreign-currency deposits expanded by 0.8% in August. Accounting for around 2.1% of foreign-currency deposits, renminbi deposits in Hong Kong climbed by 1.4% to RMB56.7 billion at the end of August.

Total loans and advances increased by 0.1% in August. Loans for use in Hong Kong shrank by 0.4% while loans for use outside Hong Kong rose by 2.5%. As Hong Kong-dollar loans and deposits contracted at roughly the same rate during the month, the Hong Kong-dollar loan-to-deposit ratio remained stable at 70.8% at the end of August.

Seasonally adjusted Hong Kong-dollar M1 rose by 2.7% in August and increased by 39.8% from a year earlier. Unadjusted Hong Kong-dollar M3 declined by 0.5% during the month but expanded by 13.3% year on year.

Annex

For further enquiries, please contact:
Peggy Lo, Manager (Communications), at 2878 1687 or
Natalie Wu, Officer (Communications), at 2878 8246

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
30 September 2009