Forex savings deposits drop 7.5%

People's Bank of China (PBOC), China's central bank, said that foreign exchange savings deposits dropped 7.5% year-on-year in February to US$83.2 billion, reflecting depositor sentiment that the renminbi may appreciate. The drop in forex savings deposits follows a 4.9% decline in January. Forex deposits have slowed in recent months, experiencing negative growth at the end of 2003. The PBOC added that renminbi savings continued to grow rapidly, increasing 18.6% year-on-year in January, totaling US$1.4 trillion.