The Hong Kong Monetary Authority disclosed a modest 0.2% increase in total deposits at authorised institutions for March, despite a quarterly drop of 0.2%. Hong Kong dollar deposits rose by 0.7%, while foreign currency deposits fell by the same margin. Yuan deposits decreased by 2.0% to CNY944.7bn (USD130.5bn). Meanwhile, cross-border renminbi settlements for trade climbed to CNY1,248.4bn from CNYbn in February. March saw a 0.8% rise in total loans and advances, with the Hong Kong dollar loan-to-deposit ratio decreasing slightly to 83.2%. Hong Kong dollar M2 and M3 indices each grew by 0.6%, though they faced a 0.4% decline year-over-year. The authority urged caution in interpreting these short-term fluctuations.