Monetary Statistics for April 2001

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

Deposits

Total deposits rose slightly in April, following three consecutive months of decline. The increase was mainly attributable to a rise in foreign currency deposits, which more than offset a decline in Hong Kong dollar deposits.

Hong Kong dollar deposits decreased marginally by 0.2% in April. The fall was attributable to decreases in demand deposits and time deposits, which more than offset a rise in savings deposits. On the other hand, foreign currency deposits increased by 2.0%, reflecting increases in both US dollar and non-US dollar foreign currency deposits.

Loans and advances

Total loans and advances contracted by 0.9% in April. Of the total, domestic loans rose marginally by 0.1%, while loans for use outside Hong Kong shrank notably by 5.2%.

Analysed by currency, both Hong Kong dollar denominated loans and foreign currency loans declined in April. The Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio was virtually unchanged at 91.5% in April.

Money supply

On a seasonally adjusted basis, Hong Kong dollar M1 rose by 2.5% in April, reflecting increases in both currency held by the public and demand deposits. Unadjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 dropped by 0.4%, while Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 both declined marginally by 0.1% in April. Compared with a year ago, unadjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 increased by 2.9%. Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 increased more notably, both by 5.0%.

For further enquiries, please contact:

Caitlin Wong, Manager (Press), at 2878 1687 or
Thomas Chan, Senior Manager (Press), at 2878 1480

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
31 May 2001