Hong Kong April exchange fund gains $38.5bn

Valuation gains on foreign currency investments and an increase in certificates of indebtedness boosted Hong Kong’s foreign currency assets.

The Exchange Fund's total assets amounted to $2.4467 trillion as at April 30 - $38.5 billion higher than the previous month.

According to figures the Monetary Authority released on Tuesday, foreign currency assets in the fund went up $34.9 billion and Hong Kong dollar assets rose $3.6 billion.

The rise in foreign currency assets was mainly due to valuation gains on foreign currency investments and an increase in certificates of indebtedness, according to a Monetary Authority report.

The rise in Hong Kong dollar assets was mainly due to valuation gains on Hong Kong equities and placements received from fiscal reserves.

The currency board account shows the monetary base at the end of April was about $1.055 trillion, representing an increase of 0.7%, from the end of March.

The backing assets went up 0.69% to $1.1376 trillion. The increase was mainly attributable to the issuance of certificates of indebtedness and interest from investments.

At the end of April, the backing ratio stood at 107.82%, compared with 107.83% at the end of March.