Monetary Statistics for February 2001

According to statistics published today (Friday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, both total deposits and loans of all authorized institutions declined during the month of February. Table 1 provides a summary and comparison with earlier months.

Deposits

Total deposits contracted for the second consecutive month, falling by 0.2%. The decline was mainly attributable to a fall in Hong Kong dollar deposits, which more than offset a rise in foreign currency deposits.

Hong Kong dollar deposits fell slightly by 0.6% in February. The decrease was across-the-board, with demand, savings and time deposits all declining. Nevertheless, foreign currency deposits rose modestly by 0.2%, reflecting increases in both US dollar and non-US dollar foreign currency deposits.

Loans and advances

Total loans and advances shrank by 0.8% in February. Both domestic loans and loans for use outside Hong Kong contracted, by 0.7% and 1.3% respectively.

Analysed by currency, Hong Kong dollar denominated loans increased, while foreign currency loans declined in February. As Hong Kong dollar loans rose while Hong Kong dollar deposits dropped, the Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio rose slightly from 89.8% in January to 91.4% in February.

Money supply

On a seasonally adjusted basis, Hong Kong dollar M1 was virtually unchanged in February. Of the total, demand deposits rose by 1.7%, which was offset by a decline in currency held by the public. Unadjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 contracted notably by 4.7%, due mainly to a significant decline of 8.7% in currency held by the public after the Chinese New Year holidays. Both Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 decreased moderately by 1.1% in February. Compared with a year ago, unadjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 declined by 6.3% in February, while both Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 increased by 4.9%.

For further enquiries, please contact:

Jasmin Fung, Manager (Press), at 2878 8246 or
Caitlin Wong, Manager (Press), at 2878 1687

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
30 March 2001