The growth rates of both money supply and credit loans dropped in July as a result of the government's effective macro-economic control policy, China's central bank said Wednesday in its monthly report on financial performance.

According to the report, outstanding broad money, or M2 - including money in circulation and all deposits - rose by 15.3 percent year-on-year to 23.8 trillion yuan (US$2.9 trillion) by the end of July. The increase was 0.9 percentage points lower than at the end of June.

Narrow money, or M1 - money in circulation and demand deposits of businesses - grew by 15 percent, 1.2 percentage points lower than the previous month.

By the end of July, outstanding Renminbi deposits stood at 23 trillion yuan (US$2.8 trillion) up 17.7 percent from a year earlier. Of the total, savings in foreign currencies rose by US$3.7 billion to US$153.7 billion, while forex loans outstanding increased by 22.8 percent to US$133.8 billion.

The exchange rate of the Chinese yuan against foreign currencies remained stable, at US$1 for 8.2769 yuan at the end of last month, said the People's Bank of China, the central bank.

(Xinhua News Agency August 12, 2004)