China’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $3.246 trillion at the end of March, rising by $19.8 billion or 0.62% from the previous month and increasing for the second straight month, according to data released by the People’s Bank of China on Sunday.Â
That marks the first time for China’s foreign exchange reserve to jump back above $3.24 trillion since January 2022.
The rise of foreign exchange reserve in March was mainly due to a combination of factors such as exchange rate translation and changes in asset prices, said the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.
The increase came despite that the Chinese yuan weakened by 0.47% against the dollar in March, while the dollar rose 0.31% against a basket of other major currencies. Last month, the US 10-year Treasury yield fell by 6 basis points to 4.19%, while the UK long-dated Treasury yield fell by 19 basis points to 3.97%, with lower yields implying rises in bond prices. Meanwhile, stock markets in several countries touched highs in March, with the US Dow Jones Index rising 2.08% and the Nikkei 225 Index rising over 3% in the same period.
China’s official gold reserve stood at 72.74 million ounces at the end of March, rising from 72.58 million ounces a month earlier, increasing for the 17th consecutive month, showed the data.Â
The value of China’s gold reserves rose to $161.07 billion at the end of March from $148.64 billion at the end of February.