Hong Kong deposits, loans rise in first quarter but loans for stock investment fall amid IPO slump, HKMA data shows
- The amount of Hong Kong dollars deposited into the city’s banks swelled to HK$7.58 trillion (US$965 billion) by the end of March
- Lending to stockbrokers and their clients, however, recorded a sharp fall of 54 per cent year on year to HK$52.39 billion
Hong Kong’s banking system held up well amid the fifth wave of Covid outbreak, as deposits and loans increased during the first quarter, according to data from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).
The amount of Hong Kong dollars deposited into the city’s banks swelled to HK$7.58 trillion (US$965 billion) by the end of March, up 2.2 per cent from the beginning of the year and 1 per cent from a year earlier.
Total deposits – which include Hong Kong dollars, US dollars and other currencies – stood at HK$15.35 trillion, rising 1.1 per cent in the quarter and 4.5 per cent from a year earlier.
Total loans in Hong Kong reached HK$7.87 trillion, up 1.9 per cent from January 1 and 3.3 per cent year on year.
Mortgage loans approved in March increased by 31.6 per cent from February to HK$34.7 billion, while the related loan drawdowns rose 7.1 per cent to HK$25.7 billion.
“The pandemic peaked in early March, and business activities and property transactions gradually returned to normal in the second-half of March. This has supported the mortgage market,” said Eric Tso Tak-ming, chief vice-president of mReferral Corporation.
