Monetary statistics for November 1996
According to statistics published today (Monday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, both deposits and loans and advances rose during November 1996.
months.
Table 1 summarises figures for November 1996 and comparisons with earlier
Deposits
Total deposits rose by 3.6% in November, following a growth of 1.7% in October. The increase was mainly led by a 5.2% growth in HK$ deposits, which outpaced a 1.5% rise in foreign currency deposits.
HK$ deposits recorded notable growth in both time deposits and savings deposits, which more than offset a fall in demand deposits. Savings and time deposits rose more rapidly in November, by 4.1% and 6.6% respectively, compared to their respective growth of 2.3% and 3.5% in the previous month.
The strong growth in time deposits was attributable partly to the placements of share subscription monies in the form of time deposits before the refund date. Demand deposits fell by 2.2% in November, reversing the rise of 2.2% in October.
The rise in foreign currency deposits was due to a 3.6% increase in US$ deposits which outweighed a 0.5% decline in non-US$ foreign currency deposits. Non-US$ foreign currency deposits have fallen for four months in a row, cumulating a total reduction of 4.1%.
Loans and Advances
Total loans and advances grew by 2.5% in November, following a slight rise of 0.1% in October. The rise was broadly based, with an expansion in domestic credit by 4% and a rise in offshore loans by 1.3%.
Of the domestic credit, loans for trade financing rose by 0.4% in November, the first monthly increase after consecutive declines in the previous four months.
On the other hand, other loans for use in Hong Kong grew notably by 4.4%, possibly fuelled by loans and advances for share subscriptions and partly contributed by the growth in mortgage loans. The result of the November 1996 Residential Mortgage Survey of 33 authorised institutions showed that outstanding residential mortgage loans grew by 1.8% during the month.