Monetary Statistics for January 2013

According to statistics published today (Thursday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, total deposits with authorized institutions expanded by 2.9% in January. Hong Kong-dollar deposits climbed by 3.6% during the month, reflecting increases in demand, savings and time deposits. Overall foreign-currency deposits grew by 2.1% in January, and renminbi deposits in Hong Kong increased by 3.5% to RMB624.0 billion. The total remittance of the renminbi for cross-border trade settlement amounted to RMB268.5 billion in January, compared with RMB264.1 billion in the previous month.

Total loans and advances rose by 2.1% in January. Loans for use in Hong Kong expanded by 2.4% and loans for use outside Hong Kong increased by 1.2%. As Hong Kong-dollar loans increased at a slower rate than deposits, the Hong Kong-dollar loan-to-deposit ratio fell to 78.4% at the end of January from 79.8% a month ago.

Seasonally adjusted Hong Kong-dollar M1 increased by 2.2% in January and rose by 20.1% year on year. Unadjusted Hong Kong-dollar M3 expanded by 3.6% during the month and picked up by 14.1% from a year earlier.

Annex

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
28 February 2013