Monetary Statistics for March 2026

Overview of Deposit Statistics

On Thu, 30 Apr, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority published monetary statistics for March 2026. Total deposits with authorized institutions increased by 0.1% in March 2026. Among the total, Hong Kong dollar deposits increased by 0.7%, while foreign currency deposits decreased by 0.3% in March. In the first quarter of 2026, total deposits and Hong Kong dollar deposits increased by 1.0% and 1.9% respectively. Renminbi deposits in Hong Kong increased by 0.6% in March to RMB1,035.2 billion at the end of March. The total remittance of renminbi for cross-border trade settlement amounted to RMB1,290.0 billion in March, compared with RMB866.5 billion in February.

Credit Portfolio and Loan Metrics

Total loans and advances increased by 1.3% in March, and increased by 3.0% in the first quarter of 2026. Among the total, loans for use in Hong Kong (including trade finance) increased by 1.8%, while loans for use outside Hong Kong decreased by 0.1% in March. The Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio decreased to 72.3% at the end of March from 72.4% at the end of February. For the first quarter of 2026 as a whole, loans for use in Hong Kong (including trade finance) increased by 3.0% after increasing by 0.2% in the previous quarter. Analysed by economic use, the increase in loans during the first quarter was mainly led by loans to financial concerns and trade finance.

Monetary Aggregates Data

Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 both increased by 0.6% in March, and both increased by 1.2% when compared to a year ago. The seasonally-adjusted Hong Kong dollar M1 increased by 1.5% in March, and increased by 13.3% compared to a year ago. Total M2 and total M3 both increased by 0.2% in March. Compared to a year earlier, total M2 and total M3 both increased by 9.3%.

Statistical Disclaimers

It should be noted that changes in deposits are affected by a wide range of factors, such as interest rate movements and fund-raising activities. As monthly monetary statistics are subject to volatilities due to a wide range of transient factors, such as seasonal funding demand as well as business and investment-related activities, caution is required when interpreting the statistics.