XN000022-1985-05-30 — Page 11

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THURSDAY, MAY 30, 1985

IN THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL, HK$M1 ROSE BY 2.9 PER CENT, HK$M2 BY 2.8 PER CENT AND HK$M3 BY 3.7 PER CENT, THE RESPECTIVE INCREASES OVER THE 12 MONTHS WERE 14.7 PER CENT, 18.6 PER CENT AND 18.7 PER CENT.

THE GROWTH RATES OF HK$M2 AND HK$M3, AFTER ADJUSTING FOR SWAP DEPOSITS, WERE HIGHER AT 1.0 PER CENT AND 1.1 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY FOR THE MONTH, AND 3.7 PER CENT AND 4.4 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY FOR THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL.

TOTAL MONEY SUPPLY

TOTAL MONEY SUPPLY REGISTERED INCREASES ON ALL DEFINITIONS. TOTAL M1 ROSE MARGINALLY BY 0.2 PER CENT, AFTER A FALL OF 6.2 PER CENT IN MARCH. TOTAL M2 AND TOTAL M3 INCREASED BY 1.2 PER CENT AND 1.0 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY, COMPARED WITH 2.1 PER CENT AND 2.5 PER CENT IN MARCH. THE CORRESPONDING GROWTH RATES OVER THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL WERE 3.0 PER CENT, 5.1 PER CENT AND 5.7 PER CENT, AND OVER THE 12 MONTHS WERE 15.2 PER CENT, 20.4 PER CENT AND 21.1 PER CENT.

LOANS AND ADVANCES

LOANS AND ADVANCES EXTENDED BY BANKS AND DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES CONTINUED TO GROW SLOWLY, BY 0.5 PER CENT FOLLOWING 5.7 PER CENT IN MARCH. OVER THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL, THESE

BY 1.7 PER CENT AND OVER THE 12 MONTHS BY 7.1 PER CENT. +

WITHIN THE TOTAL, LOANS TO FINANCE VISIBLE TRADE GREW MORE SIGNIFICANTLY, BY 3.7 PER CENT AFTER A RISE OF 2.6 PER CENT IN THE PREVIOUS MONTH. OVER THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL, THESE GREW BY 9.1 PER CENT BUT ONLY BY 6.4 PER CENT OVER THE 12 MONTHS REFLECTING DECREASES IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1984.

OTHER LOANS FOR USE IN HONG KONG ROSE BY 0.9 PER CENT IN APRIL, FOLLOWING ZERO GROWTH IN MARCH. OVER THE THREE MONTHS TO APRIL, THEY ROSE BY 1.6 PER CENT AND OVER THE 12 MONTHS BY 7.2 PER CENT.

FOREIGN CURRENCY ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

THE SPOT FOREIGN CURRENCY POSITION OF THE MONETARY SECTOR SHOWED A DECREASE IN NET ASSETS FROM $7.4 BILLION AT THE END OF MARCH, TO $5.9 BILLION AT THE END OF APRIL.

SIMILAR STATISTICS COLLECTED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF BANKING AND DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES (ON THE BASIS OF SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS) SHOWED A DECREASE IN NET SPOT FOREIGN CURRENCY ASSETS OF $1.0 BILLION TO $3.8 BILLION. NET FORWARD FOREIGN CURRENCY ASSETS, HOWEVER, ROSE BY $1.0 BILLION TO $24.0 BILLION OVER THE SAME PERIOD.

LIQUIDITY RATIO