The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (Monday)
that the official foreign currency reserve assets of Hong Kong
amounted to US$110.2 billion at the end of March 2002 (end-February
2002: US$111.3 billion) (Table 1).
Including unsettled forward contracts, the foreign currency
reserve assets of Hong Kong at the end of March 2002 also stood at
US$110.2 billion (end-February 2002: US$111.3 billion).
According to an HKMA spokesperson, the US$1.1 billion decrease
in settled foreign currency assets in the month of March was mainly
due to a decrease in the amount of repurchase agreements
outstanding at the end of the month.
In terms of foreign currency reserves ranking, Hong Kong is the
world's fourth largest holder of foreign currency reserves, after
Japan, Mainland China and Taiwan (Table
2).
The total foreign currency reserve assets of US$110.2 billion
represent over seven times the currency in circulation or 43% of
Hong Kong dollar M3, one of the highest ratios in the world.
For further enquiries, please contact:
Jasmin Fung, Manager (Press), at 2878 8246 or
Sylvia Yip, Manager (Press), at 2878 1687
Hong Kong Monetary Authority
8 April 2002
At present, four press releases relating to the Exchange Fund's
data are issued by the HKMA each month. Three of these releases are
issued to disseminate monetary data in accordance with the
International Monetary Fund's Special Data Dissemination Standard
(SDDS). The fourth press release, on the Exchange Fund's Abridged
Balance Sheet and Currency Board Account, is made in accordance
with the HKMA's policy of maintaining a high level of transparency.
For the month of April 2002, the scheduled dates for issuing the
press releases are as follows:
| 8 April |
SDDS International Reserves (Hong Kong's Latest Foreign
Currency Reserve Assets Figures) |
| 15 April |
SDDS Analytical Accounts of the Central Bank (Exchange Fund
Balance Sheet Data) |
| 26 April |
Exchange Fund Abridged Balance Sheet and Currency Board
Account |
| 30 April |
SDDS Template on International Reserves and Foreign Currency
Liquidity |
Table 1
Foreign
Currency Reserve Assets of Hong Kong
(US$ billion)
|
Excluding Unsettled
FX Contracts
|
Unsettled
FX Contracts
|
Including
Unsettled
FX Contracts
|
|
Dec 95
|
55.4
|
1.8
|
57.2
|
|
Dec 96
|
63.8
|
5.7
|
69.6
|
|
Dec 97
|
92.8
|
0.4
|
93.2
|
|
Dec 98
|
89.6
|
-
|
89.6
|
|
Dec 99
|
96.3
|
-
|
96.3
|
|
Dec 00
|
107.5
|
-
|
107.5
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jan 01
|
111.5
|
-
|
111.5
|
|
Feb 01
|
114.3
|
-
|
114.3
|
|
Mar 01
|
114.6
|
-
|
114.6
|
|
Apr 01
|
115.1
|
-
|
115.1
|
|
May 01
|
114.7
|
-
|
114.7
|
|
Jun 01
|
114.1
|
-
|
114.1
|
|
Jul 01
|
114.6
|
-
|
114.6
|
|
Aug 01
|
113.7
|
-
|
113.7
|
|
Sep 01
|
113.4
|
-
|
113.4
|
|
Oct 01
|
113.1
|
-
|
113.1
|
|
Nov 01
|
112.3
|
-
|
112.3
|
|
Dec 01
|
111.2
|
-
|
111.2
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jan 02
|
111.3
|
-
|
111.3
|
|
Feb 02
|
111.3
|
-
|
111.3
|
|
Mar 02
|
110.2
|
-
|
110.2
|
Figures for the end of 1995 and 1996 do not include Land Fund
figures. The Land Fund was established on 1 July 1997 and its
foreign currency reserve assets were included thereafter in the
above compilation. The assets of the Land Fund were merged into the
Exchange Fund in November 1998.
Table 2
Official Reserves Ranking
|
|
US$ billion
|
As at end
of
|
|
1
|
Japan
|
401.5
|
Mar 2002
|
|
2
|
Mainland China
|
223.5
|
Feb 2002
|
|
3
|
Taiwan
|
128.0
|
Mar 2002
|
|
4
|
Hong Kong
|
110.2
|
Mar 2002
|
|
5
|
Korea
|
106.1
|
Mar 2002
|
|
6
|
Germany
|
85.8
|
Feb 2002
|
|
7
|
Singapore
|
75.1
|
Feb 2002
|
|
8
|
US
|
67.8
|
Mar 2002
|
|
9
|
France
|
58.7
|
Feb 2002
|
|
10
|
India
|
54.2
|
Mar 2002
|
Sources : HKMA, Reuters, websites of
International Monetary Fund, People's Bank of China
