The Hong Kong Monetary Authority published the Exchange Fund abridged balance sheet and Currency Board Account for end-December 2024, showing total Exchange Fund assets of HKD 4,082.4bn, up HKD 55.7bn from end-November. Hong Kong dollar assets increased by HKD 110.7bn while foreign currency assets decreased by HKD 55.0bn. The increase in Hong Kong dollar assets was mainly driven by a rise in Exchange Fund Bills and Notes issued but not yet settled at month end, while the decline in foreign currency assets was mainly due to lower month-end balances of unsettled purchases of securities and mark-to-market revaluation of investments. The Monetary Base rose to HKD 1,957.6bn, up HKD 7.4bn (0.4%), mainly reflecting amortisation of discount on Exchange Fund Bills and Notes and an increase in outstanding Certificates of Indebtedness; Backing Assets increased by HKD 3.6bn (0.2%) to HKD 2,144.6bn, and the Backing Ratio fell to 109.56% from 109.79%. The figures are unaudited and the Director of Audit’s audit of the Exchange Fund’s annual financial statements is in progress.