XN000022-1979-05-04 — Page 8

FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1979

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NET IDENTIFIABLE FOREIGN ASSETS OF DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES ROSE BY $450 MILLION TO $7,739 MILLION. LOANS AND ADVANCES ABROAD FELL BY $1,043 MILLION TO $20,653 MILLION, BUT THERE WAS A FALL OF $889 MILLION IN DEPOSITS FROM BANKS ABROAD, AND A RISE OF $794 MILLION IN LENDING TO BANKS ABROAD.

QUARTERLY ANALYSIS OF LOANS AND ADVANCES

BANK LOANS AND ADVANCES ROSE BY 9.7 PER CENT IN THE THREE MONTHS TO MARCH 1979. LENDING TO FINANCIAL CONCERNS, INCLUDING DEPOSIT- TAKING COMPANIES, ROSE BY 32 PER CENT IN THE QUARTER.

LOANS TO INDUSTRY ROSE BY 13.9 PER CENT, WITH TEXTILE INDUSTRY BORROWINGS UP BY 12 PER CENT.

LOANS TO BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION ROSE BY ONLY 2.7 PER CENT, THOUGH LOANS TO INDIVIDUALS TO PURCHASE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY ROSE BY 12.4 PER CENT.

IN THE 12 MONTHS TO MARCH 1979, BANK LOANS AND ADVANCES ROSE BY 45.5 PER CENT. THE FASTEST GROWING CATEGORY OF BORROWER WAS AGAIN FINANCIAL CONCERNS, INCLUDING DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES, TO WHOM BANK LENDING ROSE BỶ 115.9 PER CENT.

LOANS TO INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE WERE UP BY 45.8 PER CENT, AND TO THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY ALONE BY 20.3 PER CENT. LENDING FOR THE BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY WAS 57.9 PER CENT HIGHER, AND FOR TRANSPORT AND TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT 42.7 PER CENT HIGHER.

LOANS TO PROFESSIONAL AND PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS ROSE BY 37 PER CENT OVER THE YEAR.

IN THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF 1979, TOTAL LOANS AND ADVANCES IN HONG KONG BY DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES ROSE BY 2.2 PER CENT. LOANS TO INDUSTRY ROSE BY 29.7 PER CENT, AND TO THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY ALONE BY 44.8 PER CENT (BUT FROM A VERY LOW BASE).

LOANS TO PROFESSIONAL AND PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS ROSE BY 16.6 PER CENT, AND WITHIN THAT CATEGORY LOANS FOR THE PURCHASE OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY ROSE BY 15 PER CENT, WHILE LENDING TO THE BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION SECTOR FELL BY 12.7 PER CENT.

A COMPARISON WITH MARCH 1978 IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR LENDING BY DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES. SINCE THE STATISTICS HAVE ONLY BEEN COLLECTED FROM DECEMBER 1978.

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