XN000022-1985-10-02 — Page 5

DEPOSITS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1985

HONG KONG DOLLAR DEPOSITS GREW 0.1 PER CENT IN

AUGUST FOLLOWING AN INCREASE OF 0.4 PER CENT IN JULY. IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST HONG KONG DOLLAR DEPOSITS GREW BY 1.3 PER CENT, AND OVER THE 12 MONTHS THE GROWTH RATE WAS 19.9 PER CENT.

FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSITS ROSE BY 3.2 PER CENT IN AUGUST, AFTER HAVING INCREASED BY 4.3 PER CENT IN JULY. IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSITS GREW BY 10.3 PER CENT AND OVER THE 12 MONTHS THE GROWTH RATE WAS 27.7 PER CENT.

FOREIGN CURRENCY SWAP DEPOSITS CONTINUED TO FALL, BY 4.9 PER CENT IN AUGUST FOLLOWING A DECLINE OF 2.5 PER CENT IN JULY, ADJUSTED FOR CHANGES IN THESE DEPOSITS, HONG KONG DOLLAR DEPOSITS FELL BY 0.4 PER CENT IN AUGUST BUT GREW BY 0.3 PER CENT IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST.

FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSITS, ON THE OTHER HAND, GREW AT HIGHER RATES OF 4.3 PER CENT IN AUGUST AND 13.0 PER CENT IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST.

TOTAL DEPOSITS WITH BANKS SHOWED A SLIGHTLY SLOWER GROWTH OF 1.8 PER CENT IN AUGUST, FOLLOWING AN INCREASE OF 1.9 PER CENT IN JULY. TOTAL DEPOSITS WITH DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES ALSO SHOWED SLOWER GROWTH OF 1.2 PER CENT IN AUGUST, FOLLOWING AN INCREASE OF 4.2 PER CENT IN JULY.

IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST, THE GROWTH OF TOTAL DEPOSITS WITH BANKS, AT 5.0 PER CENT, WAS LOWER THAN THAT WITH DEPOSIT- TAKING COMPANIES, AT 8.7 PER CENT.

BUT OVER THE 12 MONTHS TO AUGUST, THE GROWTH OF DEPOSITS WITH BANKS, AT 28.0 PER CENT, WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN THAT WITH DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES, AT 8.4 PER CENT.

HONG KONG DOLLAR MONEY SUPPLY

HONG KONG DOLLAR MONEY SUPPLY ON ALL DEFINITIONS GREW FURTHER. HK$M1 (THE NARROWEST DEFINITION) ROSE BY 2.2 PER CENT, HK$M2 ROSE BY 0.8 PER CENT AND HK$M3 BY 0.6 PER CENT IN AUGUST. THE CORRESPONDING INCREASES IN JULY WERE 2.0 PER CENT, 0.6 PER CENT AND 0.7 PER CENT.

J

IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST, HK$M1 GREW BY 9.4 PER CENT, HK$M2 BY 2.4 PER CENT AND HK$M3 BY 2.2 PER CENT. OVER THE 12 MONTHS TO AUGUST, THE CORRESPONDING INCREASES WERE 40.2 PER CENT, 26.7 PER CENT AND 20.9 PER CENT.

AFTER ADJUSTING FOR SWAP DEPOSITS, HK$M2 GREW BY 0.1 PER CENT WHILE HK$M3 RECORDED ZERO GROWTH. IN THE THREE MONTHS TO AUGUST, THEY GREW AT THE SAME RATE OF 1.2 PER CENT.

/TOTAL MONEY