FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1984
LOANS AND ADVANCES
TOTAL LOANS AND ADVANCES EXTENDED BY BANKS AND DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES AGAIN GREW ONLY SLOWLY IN OCTOBER, BY 0.5 PER CENT, FOLLOWING THE INCREASE OF 0.3 PER CENT IN SEPTEMBER. LOANS TO FINANCE VISIBLE TRADE FELL BY 1.1 PER CENT, FOLLOWING A FALL OF 1.3 PER CENT IN SEPTEMBER. OVER THE LATEST THREE MONTHS THEY FELL BY 4.6 PER CENT DESPITE THIS AN INCREASE OF 11.7 PER CENT WAS RECORDED OVER THE TWELVE MONTHS. OTHER LOANS FOR USE IN HONG KONG ALSO SHOWED LITTLE MOVEMENT -- AN INCREASE OF 0.3 PER CENT. IN THE THREE MONTHS TO OCTOBER THEY ROSE BY 0.5 PER CENT AND OVER THE TWELVE MONTHS BY ONLY 2.0 PER CENT.
FOREIGN CURRENCY ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
THE NET SPOT FOREIGN CURRENCY LIABILITIES OF THE MONETARY SECTOR CONTINUED TO DECREASE, TO $3.7 BILLION AT THE END OF OCTOBER FROM $4.5 BILLION AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER. STATISTICS COLLECTED (ON THE BASIS OF SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS) BY THE COMMISSIONER OF BANKING AND DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPAN FES SHOWED A PARALLEL DECREASE TO $5.5 BILLION FROM $7.8 BILLION, THIS FALL IN NET SPOT FOREIGN CURRENCY LIABILITIES WAS MATCHED BY A REDUCTION IN NET FORWARD FOREIGN CURRENCY ASSETS OF THE MONETARY SECTOR TO $26.5 BILLION AT THE END OF OCTOBER FROM $27.5 BILLION AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER. THIS MAY BE A REFLECTION OF REDUCED ATTRACTIVENESS OF FOREIGN CURRENCY SWAP DEPOSITS AS INTERBANK MONEY MARKET RATES EASED.
LIQUIDITY RATIO
THE AVERAGE LIQUIDITY RATIO (AS DEFINED IN S.18 OF THE BANKING ORDINANCE) FOR ALL BANKS REMAINED LITTLE CHANGED, AT THE 49.9 PER CENT COMPARED WITH 50.0 PER CENT IN SEPTEMBER. AVERAGE LIQUIDITY RATIO (AS DEFINED IN S.24A OF THE DEPOSIT TAKING COMPANIES ORDINANCE) FOR ALL DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES WAS 45.6, LITTLE CHANGED FROM 45.8 PER CENT IN SEPTEMBER.
NUMBER OF REPORTING INSTITUTIONS
THE NUMBER OF OPERATING LICENSED BANKS REMAINED UNCHANGED AT 136, WHILE THE NUMBER OF LICENSED DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES ROSE BY 2 TO 32. THE NUMBER OF REPORTING REGISTERED DEPOSIT- TAKING COMPANIES FELL TO 316.
THE FOLLOWING TABLE SETS OUT SUMMARY FIGURES FOR OCTOBER 1984 AND COMPARISONS WITH EARLIER MONTHS:
19
A