Growth of savings at Chinese banks in Shanghai in November was
at its highest level in nine months amid a correction on the stock
market, the central bank said yesterday.
Yuan savings at Chinese banks added 12.33 billion yuan (US$1.67
billion) in November, up 2.36 billion yuan from a year ago, the
Shanghai headquarters of the People's Bank of China said in a
statement. The growth is the biggest since March.
Most of the new savings are from current deposits, which added
12.07 billion yuan last month, up 1.82 billion yuan from a year
ago.
"The current deposits grew rapidly in November as investors
shunned the stock market and put their money back in banks," the
central bank said.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 19 percent in
November on concerns of a market crash and the central government's
moves to curb the assets bubble.
The stock market has been booming since last year when the
Shanghai index more than doubled. The index started to see a
correction in November after doubling again in the first 10 months
of this year.
Total deposits, yuan or foreign currency, added 102.56 billion
yuan at all financial institutions in Shanghai, setting a record
high for monthly deposits growth.
Meanwhile, the yuan credit at overseas banks in Shanghai also
grew rapidly.
New yuan lending at overseas banks in Shanghai topped 13.09
billion yuan, up 5.97 billion yuan from a year ago, the central
bank said.
About 94.5 percent of loans were made to manufacturing,
property, business rental and commercial industries. Non-locally
incorporated overseas banks saw a rapid yuan lending growth last
month, accounting for 70.8 percent of the new yuan lending.
Yuan-backed lending to deposits ratio topped 156.7 percent at
the end of November at overseas banks in Shanghai, up 27.4
percentage points from the end of 2006.
Overseas banks are required to trim the figure to 75 percent by
2011. The higher the ratio, the higher risk exposure and higher
profits prospect.
The outstanding value of yuan lending at overseas banks in the
city grew 87 percent to the end of November.
(Shanghai Daily December 11, 2007)
