The official foreign currency reserves of Hong Kong rose to 257.1 billion U.S. dollars at the end of January from 255.8 billion U.S. dollars a month earlier, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said Monday.

This makes Hong Kong the world's seventh largest holder of foreign currency reserves, based on the latest published figures.

The foreign currency reserves of 257.1 billion U.S. dollars represent over nine times the currency in circulation or about 55 percent of Hong Kong dollar M3, the broadest measure of money supply.