According to statistics published today (Friday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, total deposits with authorized institutions grew by 1.6% in December. Of the total, Hong Kong dollar deposits and foreign currency deposits rose by 2.0% and 1.2% respectively.
Total loans and advances increased by 0.6% in December. Of the total, loans for use in Hong Kong rose by 0.7%, while loans for use outside Hong Kong declined by 0.1%. Analysed by currency, Hong Kong dollar loans and foreign currency loans both recorded a small rise. As Hong Kong dollar deposits registered a larger increase than Hong Kong dollar loans, the Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio dropped to 81.5% in December.
Analysed by economic use, the expansion of domestic loans in the December quarter was broad-based. In particular, loans for stockbrokers and financial concerns rose notably. Trade financing, loans for manufacturing, transport and transport equipment also registered some increases. On the other hand, property-related loans decreased during the quarter.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, Hong Kong dollar M1 grew by 6.4% during the month and by 35.8% from a year ago. Unadjusted Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 both rose by 2.0% during the month and by 6.2% and 5.9% respectively on a year-on-year comparison.
For further enquiries, please contact:
Kevin Ip, Manager (Press), at 2878 1687 or
Thomas Chan, Senior Manager (Press), at 2878 1480
Hong Kong Monetary Authority
30 January 2004