The Hong Kong Monetary Authority published March 2026 monetary statistics showing total deposits with authorized institutions rose 0.1%, as HKD deposits increased 0.7% and foreign currency deposits fell 0.3%. Total loans and advances increased 1.3% in the month, with loans for use in Hong Kong including trade finance up 1.8% and loans for use outside Hong Kong down 0.1%. The HKD loan-to-deposit ratio edged down to 72.3% at end-March from 72.4% at end-February as HKD deposits grew faster than HKD loans. For the first quarter of 2026, total deposits increased 1.0%, HKD deposits 1.9%, and total loans and advances 3.0%. Loans for use in Hong Kong including trade finance rose 3.0% after 0.2% growth in the previous quarter, mainly led by loans to financial concerns and trade finance. RMB deposits in Hong Kong increased 0.6% in March to RMB1,035.2 billion, while RMB remittances for cross-border trade settlement reached RMB1,290.0 billion compared with RMB866.5 billion in February. HKD M2 and M3 both rose 0.6% in March and 1.2% from a year earlier, the seasonally adjusted HKD M1 increased 1.5% in the month and 13.3% year on year, and total M2 and M3 both increased 0.2% in March and 9.3% from a year earlier. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority cautioned that monthly deposit and monetary statistics can be volatile because of factors including interest rate movements, fund-raising activity, seasonal funding demand, and business and investment-related flows.

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