Hong Kong deposits see modest growth in August, up 1.1% YoY

Year-to-date, total deposits have grown by 5.0%.

The total deposits of Hong Kong’s authorised institutions inched up by 1.1% year-on-year (YoY) in August, according to data released by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).  

Hong Kong dollar deposits rose by 0.2%, whilst foreign currency deposits saw a stronger increase of 2.0%.  

Year-to-date, total deposits have grown by 5.0%, with Hong Kong dollar deposits up by 1.5%.  

However, renminbi deposits in Hong Kong fell by 4.1% to $141.97b (RMB1,014.1b) at the end of August. Cross-border renminbi remittance for trade settlement totaled $177.51b (RMB1,267.9b) in August, slightly down from $179.41b (RMB1,281.5b) in July.  

Total loans and advances in August increased by 0.3%, though they decreased by 2.7% year-to-date. Loans for use in Hong Kong, including trade finance, grew by 0.2%, whilst loans for use outside Hong Kong rose by 0.6%.  

The Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio decreased to 79.3% at the end of August, compared to 80.0% at the end of July, as Hong Kong dollar deposits increased whilst loans declined.  

Monetary aggregates saw mixed movements in August. Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 both increased by 0.2%, registering a 1.9% year-on-year growth.  

However, the seasonally adjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 fell by 1.2% in August and dropped 3.7% compared to a year earlier, partly reflecting investment-related activities. Total M2 and M3 both rose by 1.1% in August, with year-on-year growth of 7.8%.  

The HKMA cautioned that monthly monetary statistics can be affected by various short-term factors, such as seasonal and IPO-related funding needs, and should be interpreted with care to avoid over-generalisation of short-term fluctuations.

($1.00 = RMB7.02)