Monetary Statistics for December 2019

Press Releases

31 Jan 2020

Monetary Statistics for December 2019

According to statistics published today (Friday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, total deposits with authorized institutions edged down by 0.1% in December 2019. Among the total, Hong Kong dollar deposits edged down by 0.3%; overall foreign-currency deposits increased by 0.1%. Renminbi deposits in Hong Kong decreased by 0.9% to RMB632.2 billion at the end of December. The total remittance of renminbi for cross-border trade settlement amounted to RMB541.1 billion in December, compared with RMB444.5 billion in November.

Total loans and advances increased by 0.1% in December. Among the total, loans for use in Hong Kong (including trade finance) increased by 0.4% while loans for use outside Hong Kong decreased by 0.7% from a month ago. The Hong Kong-dollar loan-to-deposit ratio picked up to 90.3% at the end of December from 90.0% at the end of November, as Hong Kong-dollar deposits declined while Hong Kong-dollar loans stayed virtually unchanged.

In the fourth quarter of 2019, loans for use in Hong Kong (including trade finance) increased by 0.6% following growth of 1.9% in the previous quarter. Analysed by economic use, the increase in loans during the fourth quarter was mainly led by residential mortgage loans and loans to building, construction, property development and investment.

Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 both edged down by 0.4% in December, and rose by 2.4% and 2.3% respectively compared to a year ago. The seasonally-adjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 increased by 0.6% in December, but declined by 1.5% compared to a year ago, reflecting in part investment-related activities. Total M2 and M3 both edged down by 0.1% in December, and expanded by 2.8% and 2.7% respectively from a year earlier.

As monthly monetary statistics are subject to volatilities due to a wide range of transient factors, such as seasonal and IPO-related funding demand as well as business and investment-related activities, caution is required when interpreting the statistics.

 

Annex

 

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
31 January 2020

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Last revision date : 31 January 2020