香港金管局向银行提供人民币流动性

香港金管局向银行提供人民币流动性  

Hong Kong's central bank will start providing Chinese currency loans to the city's banks today to prevent a shortage of Liquidity from destabilising the offshore renminbi market.
The Hong Kong Moary Authority announced yesterday that it would offer one-week renminbi loans in exchange for high-quality collateral such as Chinese government bonds.
"Such a backstop facility will calm nerves as banks will be able to approach the moary authority for more renminbi funds whenever necessary
" HSBC wrote to clients. Liquidity squeezes have shaken the offshore renminbi money markets three times this year
with short-term interest rates spiking as lenders scrambled for funds.
"这种后盾安排将有助于安抚紧张情绪，因为各银行将能够根据需要，随时从金管局获得更多人民币资金，"汇丰(HSBC)在发送给客户的资料中写道。今年，流动性紧缩已经三次冲击离岸人民币货币市场，随着各银行忙于筹措资金，短期利率出现激增。
Analysts said the HKMA's new loan facility would alleviate short-term tightness in the market
which has grown rapidly over the past o years but is still small and illiquid.
The offshore renminbi market began in Hong Kong in 2010 and has since spread to London and Singapore.
There are few restrictions on renminbi trading in these offshore centres
but Beijing retains extensive capital controls that cut them off from the vast pool of liquidity on the mainland. As investors have stopped expecting the renminbi to appreciate against the dollar in recent months
total renminbi deposits in Hong Kong have fallen 12 per cent from a November 2011 peak of Rmb627bn.
At the same time
Hong Kong banks have expanded their renminbi loans
raising concerns about a lack of liquidity. The HKMA facility makes use of its Rmb400bn currency swap arrangement with the People's Bank of China.
The moary authority said rates on its renminbi loans would be determined "by reference to prevailing market interest rates".
Weisheng He
Asia forex strategist at Citibank
said that until the HKMA specified the exact rates on the facility
it would be hard to determine how much it would impact the market.
"It will certainly cap the upside in liquidity squeezes and the knowledge that HKMA can provide a liquidity backstop will also reduce the risk of liquidity squeeze
" Mr He said.
The HKMA said Hong Kong government bonds and exchange fund bills and notes
denominated in Hong Kong dollars
would be acceptable collateral.
It added that while banks could roll over the borrowings under the facility
it "should not be regarded as a steady source of funding for their business".