Central Bank of China

PRESS RELEASE Release Date: April 25, 2003




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Financial Conditions (March 2003)

Monetary Aggregates For the month of March 2003, the annual growth rates of the monetary aggregates M1A, M1B and M2, measured on a daily average basis, were 7.60%, 5.78%, and 2.20%, respectively. The M1A growth rate was higher than that in the previous month mainly due to the lower base of the previous year, while the M1B and M2 growth rates fell from those in the previous month mainly because of the successive increase in foreign financial assets held by the general public, the sluggish stock market, the decline in net foreign capital inflows compared with the corresponding month in the previous year, and the stagnant growth of loans and investments. In addition, the aggregate of M2 plus bond funds held by the general public posted an annual growth rate of 3.62% for the month.

Direct and Indirect Finance At the end of March, the annual growth rate of total loans and investments in major financial institutions, including monetary institutions and the Postal Savings System, rose from "2.41% at the end of the previous month to "1.81% mainly due to the lower base of the previous year. If loans and investments extended by life insurance companies and investment and trust companies, major financial institutions' reclassifying non-accrual loans and writing-off bad loans, as well as funds raised directly from financial markets were taken into account, the total funds raised by non-financial sectors showed an annual growth rate of 3.33% for the month.



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Notes: 1. The upcoming Financial Conditions (April 2003) is to be released at 16:20 on May 26, 2003.

2. For the release schedule for the next six months, check the CBC website at http://www.cbc.gov.tw/account/index.html.

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